Checkmate
by Abby J and Amber L
Summary: The battle lines are drawn in the Bartlet house when it's Jed versus Abbey in a game of politics! This is the part ten of the Snapshots of the Past series! Story complete!
1. Chapter 1

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 1

Disclaimer: The characters depicted in this story belong to NBC, WB, and Aaron Sorkin. We're just borrowing them for some fun :)

Story Summary: The battle lines are drawn in the Bartlet house when it's Jed versus Abbey in a game of politics

Author's Note: This is a bit different, but we hope it's fun!

Spring 1982

Dressed in his white shirt and tuxedo pants, Jed sat hunched over the small cherrywood table, a black rook in his hand as he contemplated his next move. He was used to this. There was a time when Abbey's primping would have stirred his impatience to the point of anger, but that time had long since passed. He now just accepted that any elegant dinner or formal party would require an hour or two of downtime for him while he waited for her.

Tonight was no different.

A copy of last Sunday's New York Times crossword puzzle was crumpled against the rim of the trash can, a clear indication that he had completed it with his own four-letter word for a five-letter answer, and his worn edition of Jacobo Timerman's The Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number was tossed on top of the bed. The girls were spending the night with Abbey's parents in Boston, so Jed chose to entertain himself - alone - with an unsuspenseful game of chess.

Finally, it looked as though Abbey was making progress. She waltzed out in front of him in a purple strapless cocktail dress, her hips swaying slightly, causing him to drop his rook at first glance.

"Wow."

"Just the reaction I wanted," she said, her gaze quickly falling to the ground. "Do these shoes match?"

"Each other?"

"Seriously." She modeled them by moving her feet together.

"They're beige."

"They're taupe."

He shrugged. "Whatever."

"I didn't ask for a color analysis. Do they match?"

"The shoes are taupe and the dress is purple, so no, they don't match."

"I'm not asking if they match the dress. I'm asking if they match the hose."

He looked at her for forty-five agonizing seconds before he gave up trying to make sense of her logic. "What?"

"I'm short. If the shoes match my legs, it creates a continuous line from my knees to my feet and gives the illusion that I'm taller."

Knowing there was no way he would get out of a conversation like this unscathed, he simply nodded and agreed. "Okay. Then in that case, yes, the shoes are a perfect match."

Satisfied, Abbey walked over to her old Victorian jewelry box to pull out a pair of amethyst gem earrings. "How much fun could it possibly be playing chess by yourself?"

"It's more fun than you know. I look at the whole board. It gives me a chance to strategize to avoid being caught off-guard. First rule of chess, My Sweet, always look ahead and anticipate your opponent's next move. Otherwise, you'll be sitting on the other end of 'checkmate.'"

"Thanks for the lesson." She lifted the sides of her hair as she approached him. "Are these earrings okay?"

"The earrings are independent of the dress as well?"

"Jed."

"I'm just wondering if you want your neck to look longer."

She took his teasing in stride, throwing him a cocky smirk as she angled her head just so to flirtatiously wink at him. Rising to his feet and flipping his jacket over his shoulder in that famous Jed Bartlet way, he simply laughed.

Jed loved the serious, professional side of his wife, but he enjoyed the spunky, playful Abbey even more. With her residency nearly finished, she was studying for her board certification exam, and then, her fellowship year to complete her subspecialty in thoracic surgery. The long hours were far from over, but every step in pursuit of her dream forced another clearing in the cloud of stress that surrounded her.

He could almost see the tension vanishing a little more every day. It was visible in her smile, in her twinkling green eyes, and her beaming face that was beginning to show the very first signs of laugh lines around the mouth. She was always beautiful, but tonight, she just looked radiant.

He hoped for a pleasant evening, devoid of any serious discussion. He was fooling himself, of course. The annual celebration for the state democrats to mark the final month of the legislative session was never without a small amount of controversy. This year, it would be even worse, because this year, the topic of choice was also Abbey's passion.

"They spout the support of medical and public health organizations and, yet, not one American health association accepts marijuana as medicine," Representative Bob Logan pointed out to the small crowd gathered around him.

"And not one of them can site any reasonable study that's been done to suggest..." Representative Carl Morrison began.

"Excuse me," Abbey interjected. "I'm sorry, but I just wanted to answer Representative Logan. I can get you a list of health professionals who advocate the use of medicinal marijuana."

"That isn't necessary, Mrs. Bartlet..."

"Doctor Bartlet," she corrected respectfully. "I happen to be one of those people. Marijuana is safer than many of the medicines we traditionally use to treat patients. The benefits far outweigh the side affects."

"Now correct me if I'm wrong, but what about the damage it does to the body? What about the addictive properties?"

"Only nine percent of users become dependent. And, really, when you compare that to the number of alcoholics in this country..."

Jed wrapped a tight arm around Abbey's waist. "Okay, I think we've about worn this topic out."

"No, we really haven't," Abbey replied, looking at him quizzically. It wasn't like Jed to halt a debate, especially one like this.

"Why don't we get something to drink?" He said, prompting her suspicions as he ushered her away from the group of politicians.

"What was that?"

"I just wanted tonight to be a peaceful night. No shop talk."

"Everyone here is a state legislator and you really thought there would be no shop talk?"

"Abbey."

"What's going on, Jed?"

"I'd just prefer it if..."

Another Representative passed by the couple, stopping to whisper to Abbey, "I agree with you, Dr. Bartlet. I wanted to pass the legislation to legalize it this year, but it was railroaded before it ever got off the ground."

She turned to greet Larry Griggs, a man she had met many times. "Well, I'm not convinced pot should be legalized, but I do think it should be used as a viable drug option for patients with terminal illnesses."

"Yes, that's what I mean. Not general legalization."

"For medicinal use. I didn't even know it was up for consideration."

"Oh yes. A few of us wanted to propose it and we tried to find a sponsor, but had virtually no support from anyone else."

"I'm sure Jed could have wrangled a few votes. Couldn't you, Darling?" Jed took a long sip of his martini, refusing to connect to his wife's gaze. "Jed?"

His silence answered the question she asked, and even provided clues to the one she didn't. They had talked about this before and she had taken for granted that Jed shared her belief on such a controversial topic. But as he set down his drink and pulled hers out of her hands, then grabbed her arm to escort her to a more private corner of the room, she realized she was wrong.

"Look..."

"You're not seriously against this," she insisted. "Are you?"

"This isn't something I want to get into right now."

"Your colleagues are talking about it. Why wouldn't you want to get into it now?"

"Because I have a feeling if I tell you what I really think, you're going to get pissed at me and cause a scene."

"Being the psychopath I am?"

"That isn't what I meant."

"I'm a big girl, Jed. I can handle the fact that not everyone will agree with my opinion." She leaned in slightly and said softly, "Even if I am a medical doctor and am speaking with some level of authority on the matter."

"Can we talk about it later?"

"Us?"

"Yeah."

"Sure."

She turned from him then, but with a gentle grip on her upper arm, he spun her back around. "Where are you going?"

"To mingle," Abbey answered so innocently that he heard a spark of rebellion in her voice. "Isn't that why we came?"

"Abbey, please let this issue drop." Jed stopped and smiled at the couple who passed them, then continued. "You know I wouldn't presume to tell you what to talk about..."

"Or what not to talk about in this case."

"Please. It's important."

His urgency gave her pause. Never had he tried to stifle her opinion, even if he didn't agree with her. But without a morsel of doubt, she trusted that he had his reasons. Reasons he would hopefully explain to her later. So, she gestured with a subtle tilt of her head and ignored the issue for the rest of the night.

It was only after they returned home that she approached the subject once again.

"Do you now want to tell me how my debating the advantages of marijuana would have hurt you or your political agenda?" she asked boldly as she kicked off her three-inch heels and presented her back to him so he could unzip her dress.

"We don't want the debate."

"We?" She turned to face him after he unzipped her.

"The rest of us. Both parties agree a debate on medicinal marijuana would never even make it to a vote and there are more important things to focus on. I didn't want you humoring Griggs into thinking he could drum up support from me through you."

"And what if I happen to think you're wrong?" She walked away.

Jed threw on a pair of boxers and a faded Notre Dame T-shirt. "You're entitled to your opinion."

"You're wrong, Jed. You're wrong," Abbey called out from the bathroom. "More and more doctors are advocating the use the marijuana for all sorts of conditions. There are tens of thousands of patients around the country who could get immediate relief from some of their symptoms through this drug."

He pulled back the sheets and crawled into bed. "This is why I didn't want to talk about it."

"Why?"

"Because I knew you'd take the scientific approach and I think there's more to it than that. Making illegal drugs legal sends a dangerous message. It destabilizes the theory that all drugs are dangerous."

"That's a poor argument."

Jed rolled his eyes. This was exactly what he expected. "Uh huh."

Abbey stepped out of the bathroom and sat on the edge of the bed, now dressed in her silk pajamas. "You're not a doctor."

"And you're not a politician," he snapped. "I wish you'd remember that."

Surprised by his defensiveness, she replied, "I do remember that."

This was foreign territory. She had been a staunch supporter of medicinal marijuana since the late '70s when the debate really made headlines. He knew this about her and yet, she never realized where he stood. She could accept his disagreement, but it was the sting of being kept in the dark about something so important to her that spurred her bitterness.

"There's other legislation I'd like to pursue." He softened his tone considerably, but it didn't sway her feelings.

"Like raising the cost of parking tickets? Or limiting the number of pets one can own?" Her sarcasm could easily rival his, especially when she was annoyed.

Insulted, his eyes narrowed and he spoke with a tightened jaw. "Like funding Head Start, like making sure no one cuts fine arts out of next year's school budget, like focusing on measures that would keep criminals like Frank Crews locked up forever."

Although it had been three years since she was attacked, Abbey still flinched when she heard that name. "Well then, better luck next year," she returned, sliding her legs under the covers.

"Nice, Abbey."

"You're supposed to be representing the people who put you in office."

"I am! And in case you're forgetting, they put ME in office. I think I'm adequately qualified to determine what they had in mind when they voted for me. If you want a say in policy, then put your name on the ballot. Otherwise, express your opinion then let me do my job without worrying about a lecture from you every time I take a stand you don't like!"

And with that, he fluffed his pillow, yanked on the sheets and closed his eyes. Abbey rolled away from him and tugged on the sheets until she gripped a fistful of fabric under her chin.

Neither got much sleep that night. The sun began to rise before Jed actually drifted off and less than an hour later, the sound of clinking pots and pans disturbed him. He turned to find Abbey's side of the bed empty, then slipped into his navy blue velour robe and made his way downstairs.

"Hi," he said sheepishly as he reached the kitchen.

"Hi." Abbey put a lid over the eggs she had just cooked. Already dressed in a simple black suit, her hair was pulled into a French twist held in place by a clip, the way she usually wore it to work.

"I thought your shift didn't start until noon."

"It doesn't. I have to run an errand."

Jed cornered her near the kitchen table. "Forget the errand. Lets have breakfast together." He gave her a smile. "I want to apologize for last night."

"We both said things. I was upset and I shouldn't have reacted the way I did."

"So let's talk about it. Without the hostility or preconceived notions. Let's hear each other out."

"I would have loved to last night, but this morning...I really can't forget about the errand. It's important."

"Can't be that important."

She pulled a cup out of the cupboard. "I made you a couple of eggs and I cut up some fresh fruit in the fridge."

"What are you doing that can't wait until Monday?"

"I'm driving to Concord to pick up some paperwork."

"What kind of paperwork?" He took a bite of the cucumber she had just peeled.

"The kind I need to run for office," she answered nonchalantly while pouring him some orange juice.

Stunned, the uneaten end of the cucumber sat frozen between his teeth until he pulled it out. "What?"

"I'm challenging you for the Democratic nomination in September."

Jed stared at her, speechlessly for several seconds. Then, he finally mumbled, "You...what?"

Abbey looked him squarely in the eye. "I'm taking your advice and putting my name on the ballot. I'm challenging you for your seat in the State House. We'll be running against each other. Won't that be something, Dear?"

TBC 


	2. Chapter 2

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: The characters depicted in this story belong to NBC, WB, and Aaron Sorkin. We're just borrowing them for some fun :)

Previously: Jed and Abbey had a bitter fight while discussing new legislation that would make marijuana legal for medical use; when Jed told Abbey that if she wanted a say, she should run for office, Abbey told him she was accepting his challenge

Summary: The argument between Jed and Abbey escalates and later, Abbey has a change of heart and alters her plan

"That's a good one."

Jed's grin vanished rather quickly when he took a closer look at his wife's face. Abbey's feet were firmly planted on the ground and it was clear from the way her hands were folded in front of her as she looked at him with such intensity, she wasn't kidding. In fact, rarely had he seen a more serious expression dominate those sultry green eyes.

He thought, for only a moment, that perhaps he misunderstood her. Maybe she didn't really say what he thought she said. After all, Abbey had always cared deeply about the issues, but she had never shown much interest in being a politician herself.

His mind immediately raced with other possibilities until her gentle voice broke the barrier of silence and confirmed what he didn't want to believe.

"I'm not kidding," she said with a certain bit of tenderness, a switch from the tone she used moments earlier. "I'm running against you in the primary."

"No, you're not." Denial was a defense mechanism Jed knew all too well.

"Yes, Jed, I am." His lips were pursed together so tightly, she knew he was waiting for more. "You said last night that if I want a say in policy, I should put my name on the ballot. I agree with you. It's not fair for me to lecture you about things I'm not willing to take on myself."

He stuffed his hands into the soft pockets of his robe and paced. "Well, this is certainly an interesting way to start the day."

"You made a lot of sense last night. The people in our district elected you to represent them in the best way you could and you've done a damn good job. But we disagree on what's important and if I want to get my voice heard, then I'm going to have to go for it, just like you did. I think that..."

"Not exactly like I did, Abbey." His sharp voice instantly derailed her train of thought. She waited for him to finish. "I never challenged you."

"There was no one to challenge in the last primary. Besides, you didn't challenge anyone the first two times, Jed. You ran unopposed in Hanover."

"Are you saying I couldn't have won if I had challenged someone?"

"No. God, no. That isn't at all what I'm saying. I just mean that if someone held this seat and you disagreed with what he or she was doing, you would have challenged that person. That's why you challenged the Republican incumbent when we moved to Manchester two years ago. You wanted to focus on other issues."

"And you don't think I've done a good job with that?"

"That isn't what I said."

Abbey never doubted his dedication or his ability. Frustration was the driving force now, but the discussion was getting away from her. Every word that came out of her mouth had a harsher tinge to it from Jed's point of view. She had sufficiently raised his defensive hackles.

"No, but it sure as hell is what you implied. You think I'm a lousy representative."

Her arms relaxed at her side, Abbey shook her head. "Stop putting words in my mouth! That isn't what I think. You and I have different priorities and I have to do this to shed light on the issues you won't."

"Give me a break!" he growled. "This isn't about you answering the call to duty. This is about you teaching me a lesson because I don't agree with your opinion on pot."

"No it isn't," Abbey argued.

"Yes, it is." He closed the space between them. "I've been married to you for nearly fifteen years, Abbey. Give me some credit, will you?"

"I'm a doctor, Jed! I want the debate on medicinal marijuana. I want the debate on euthanasia. I think it's important. Those bill proposals that have fallen by the wayside because you feel there are more pressing things to deal with are the things I want to face head-on. What's wrong with that?"

Jed spun around himself, every step moving him away from her. "Yeah, how are you going to do this?"

"What?"

"You're not even finished with your residency and you have your certification boards coming up. How do you plan to be a wife, a mother, a doctor, and a candidate all at the same time?"

"The same way you managed to be a husband, a father, a professor, and a candidate. I'll figure it out."

"A professor isn't shackled to an around-the-clock on-call schedule. You have no plan. You're just going to wing it. And the girls and I will have to figure it out."

"I'll take care of things," she snapped.

"What if I don't run? What if I tell you right now, right here, that if you fill out that paperwork, then I'm dropping out of the race? Will the prospect still be as attractive to you? What would happen to your little strategy if I quit?"

"Then I guess I'll win," she answered coolly. "I'll win the primary and I'll go on to the general election."

"That's just great." His shock was now barricaded behind a wall of hurt and she cringed at his tight jaw and the stress she heard in his wounded voice.

"Jed, I'm sorry." Abbey reached out her hand to him, but he pulled back. "I didn't mean that. I'm not sure what I mean right now."

"Then let's not talk now because everything you say is just making me angrier and pretty soon, I, too, may start saying things I don't mean."

"Okay then. We'll talk later. I have to get to Concord anyway. Millie's driving up from Boston to meet me for breakfast."

Jed nodded, but said nothing.

She couldn't remember the last time she had seen his handsome sapphire orbs outlining the hardened features of a man so confused, yet outraged at the same time. She paused a moment to take in the glimmer of warmth that radiated from his face when he mumbled a faint goodbye. Already doubting her decision, she grabbed her soft leather briefcase and headed out the door.

Later that morning, she sat across the breakfast table from Millie, explaining the situation from beginning to end, anticipating her friends interruption and continuing when there wasn't one. Finally, after fifteen minutes of Abbey's flustered narration, Millie intervened.

"So you're going to run?" she asked, astonished about the possibility.

"No. Jed was right. I am just trying to get through to him and this was the most dramatic way to get the point across. It worked too - a little too well."

"What do you mean?"

"I didn't expect him to question my faith in him. Support's a big thing with us. He's always given his to me and I've always given mine to him."

"Well, sure. But can you really support him when you don't agree with him?"

"I agree with a lot of other things. Just not this. And to the tell you the truth, I'm angry. I should have fought harder to assure him that I think he's a fantastic representative, but I was just so angry."

"Why are you angry, Abbey?"

"He didn't even bring it up with me, Millie. I realize he can't tell me every single thing he does in the State House, but he knew how much I cared about this. I've discussed it with him several times in the past month alone and it comes up in the legislature and he doesn't even mention it to me? He doesn't have to agree, but he didn't say a word. He avoided the fight at work, then came home and avoided the fight with me."

"So what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to find some other way to get through to him and his colleagues. I want them to sit down with a doctor and learn more about it. If they still don't think it's a viable option, fine, but I want them to hear the scientific side." Abbey dropped the napkin she had been crumpling in her fist and dug through her briefcase to pull out a stack of papers. "I just have to figure out how to make that happen."

"Are you sure you're ready for this?"

"I'm more than ready for this."

Millie grabbed Abbey's wrist as she fumbled with the papers. "Take it easy. Don't go overboard and do something that's going to hurt your marriage or your husband. Nothing is worth that. I know, I'm divorced."

Millie was right and Abbey knew it. Nothing would make her jeopardize the close bond she shared with Jed. From the day she met him, she felt a certain connection she had never felt with anyone else and after fifteen years of marriage, that connection was even stronger. She wanted to spotlight the issue, but she never wanted to hurt him.

It was obvious, though, that she had done just that.

Jed was stumbling around the sink that night when she came home from the hospital. After kicking off her shoes, the sound of running water lured her to the kitchen.

"You're up."

He turned for a minute, giving her only a glimpse of his drained expression. "I couldn't sleep so I made a snack."

"Are the girls in bed?"

"Hours ago. It was getting so late, I assumed you were going to spend the night in Hanover."

"I always call you when I spend the night in Hanover."

"Yeah, well, it wouldn't be the first thing you did today that surprised me."

Abbey let out an exasperated sigh. "Jed."

His back to her, Jed set his glass aside and rested his hands on the counter. "I'm not going to run this time. I won't air our dirty laundry the way you want to. I won't be one of those people. The seat is all yours."

"You'd give up the seat?" Even in the middle of a bitter argument, he made a loving gesture to keep some level of peace between them.

"Instead of fighting you for it? Damn right." He turned furiously towards her and noticed that for the first time that day, she cracked a small smile. "What?"

"Nothing," she lied, not yet willing to show her vulnerability. "I don't want you to give up your seat. I never wanted that. This thing is just important to me."

"I know."

"I didn't fill out the paperwork and I'm not going to. I don't want the seat."

"What?"

"I'm not running."

"You said..."

"I know what I said. But I'm not doing it." She walked away. He followed.

"Abbey?" She spun around at the foot of the stairs. "What happened?"

"Nothing. I just had time to think."

"No." He moved beside her. "What happened?"

"I can barely breathe as it is with all the hours at the hospital and studying for my exam. I don't have time to run."

"That's a switch."

"And, frankly, I'm not wild about you accusing me of doing this because I think you're doing a lousy job when all I've ever done is rave about how wonderful you are at it."

"What do you expect me to think?"

"I've always supported you because I believe in you. You can do anything you set your mind to and I KNOW how much you care about the people you represent."

Though he needed to hear that, it didn't ease the tension between them. "It didn't sound like you thought so this morning."

"Thanks to residual anger from last night. And, to be honest, this morning's conversation only made it worse."

"You're angry because I don't agree with you."

"There are a number of reasons I'm angry right now and you not sharing my opinion is at the very bottom of the list."

"What's at the top?"

She curled her bottom lip as she stood there quietly. It had been a long day and the last thing either of them needed was another round of snide remarks before it ended. She began her trek up the stairs, whispering, "I'm going to bed."

"You're not the only one who's pissed."

"I didn't think I was."

"This isn't a game to me. Leaving here this morning, making me think you're going to Concord to pick up papers...what was that supposed to be, cute?"

She stopped halfway up and rummaged through her bag, pulling out a manilla folder. "I did pick them up. I wasn't lying to you. I just found something that sounded more reasonable, something I could do without feeling like I was betraying you."

"What's that?"

"A public policy initiative. It won't force you to agree with me, but it will suggest you revisit Larry Griggs's proposal, that you look it over and study all the facts, including those coming straight from medical doctors. I'm coordinating with some colleagues to distribute petitions in every district statewide."

"A public policy initiative? Aren't those instructions? You're giving me instructions?"

"Not just you. Every state representative and senator. If we get enough signatures, it'll be on the ballot and it will clearly state to all of you that your constituents want you to engage in a legislative debate about legalizing medicinal use of marijuana."

He hurriedly flipped through the pages. "That's all it is, you know. Even if you get the support, it's a debate. JUST a debate. You're not forcing my hand."

"I know."

He mulled it over for mere seconds before a sparkle of relief shined his eyes. "I can live with that. I don't think you'll get enough signatures though. I don't think enough people support it."

"At the very least, It'll bring attention to the issue, which is all I wanted to do." She eased backwards just as he retrieved his reading glasses.

"Abbey," he called out. "If we're going to have this fight..."

"We are going to have this fight," she replied immediately as she faced him.

"Lets not make it dirty."

"I have no intention of doing that. I love you, Jed. I'm not out to hurt you and I don't want you to take a stand just to placate me. I want you to consider something that I don't think you've spent much time considering."

"I'm sure you're more than prepared to show me why I should."

"I am. And I'm sure you're anticipating my every move while strategizing yours."

He nodded and just as she turned away, the tension that held him hostage all day faded slightly to reveal the tiniest hint of a smile as he replied under his breath, "You bet your ass."

TBC 


	3. Chapter 3

Rated NC-17 for sex

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: The characters depicted in this story belong to NBC, WB, and Aaron Sorkin. We're just borrowing them for some fun :)

Previously: Seeing how upset he was by the suggestion, Abbey decided not to challenge for his seat and instead started a public policy initiative campaign to gather constituents to instruct him and his colleagues to debate the issue

Summary: When Jed informs his colleagues of Abbey's actions, they ask him to keep an eye on things; Abbey is eager to prove she can still take care of her family and run a successful constituent campaign; a confused Liz doesn't react well when she finds out what Abbey's doing; Jed and Abbey make up

Jed walked past all the open office doors in the dimly lit hallway that stretched through a building adjacent to the State House. It was this building that housed the state congressional offices and it was here that Jed and his democratic colleagues huddled together to strategize every so often.

He rounded the corner towards the room that appeared welcoming and friendly. Sounds of laughter echoed through the opened double doors and he soon heard his friends calling out for him as they waved him inside.

"We were wondering what was taking so long," one of them said as he shut the door behind him. "You're the last one here."

Within state politics, this was their war room. Armed with constituent letters, public appearance schedules, and piles of wrinkled papers that held the first draft of legislative proposals, this was where the Democrats gathered to share their thoughts, ideas, and problems.

Today, in this room, Jed showed up ready to deliver the news no one wanted to hear.

"There's a new citizen's group that's starting a campaign for a public policy initiative," he said. "And it's going to affect all of us."

"What's the cause this time?"

"Medicinal marijuana."

Sitting in one of the antique wood chairs that lined the large cherry table, Larry Griggs leapt to his feet. "Are you serious?"

"Is the group based in your district, Jed?"

"Their leader is," Jed answered. "The woman who's organizing the whole thing is a doctor in my district, but she's got people coordinating statewide."

"She won't get very far," one of the cynical members offered.

"If she does, it'll be just as bad for all of us as it will be for the Republicans," another warned.

"Not all of us." Griggs smiled.

"At the very least, it leaves us vulnerable to criticism from opponents. The primary is coming up in September. I don't know about the rest of you, but I've got problems enough in my district. The last thing I need is ridicule about getting something like this passed."

"It's not the vote she's concerned about," Jed replied. "She wants the debate. She just wants us to consider it."

"It's a waste of time. You should tell her that, Jed. Talk to her, make her understand the session's almost over and there are more important things..."

"Fellas, I already tried. She's serious and I don't think anyone's going to change her mind. Besides, do we really want to talk down constituents from getting involved in the process?"

"She's your district, Bartlet." Brandon Kelley, the Democratic Whip looked Jed squarely in the eye. "Surely there's something you can do."

"Believe me, there's nothing we can do right now. When something is important to her, God, Himself, can't strike down the wall of determination she builds around her."

"You know her well?" Griggs asked.

"I'm married to her."

"You're kidding! Abbey?"

Jed stared at the surprised faces looking back at him. "She's not playing around."

"This is good," Kelley replied. "You can keep an eye on her. Let us know if she's making any progress."

"I won't spy on my wife."

"We're not asking you to, Jed."

Jed's eyes scanned the crowd and landed on Floor Leader Anthony Patell. "No?"

"No," he said. "As a representative, it's your job to stay abreast of a potential situation in your district. Do that. Gauge constituent reaction to Abbey's efforts and report back to us so we can be ready for the fight. We have to stay a step ahead of her if for no other reason, damage control."

It certainly sounded benign enough. He wouldn't be rummaging through her things or eavesdropping on her conversations. He would simply keep an eye out for the number of residents who supported Abbey's position. Had it been anyone else, Jed would have been eager and willing to do as Patell suggested, but there was something a bit unsettling about taking on his wife, even in the most professional sense.

He hesitated slightly, a myriad of problematic scenarios running rampant in his mind. He and Abbey hadn't resolved their latest fight and he feared this would only make things worse. But Abbey would understand, he soon came to acknowledge. She wasn't small and petty, unable to separate his political maneuvering from the love he had for her as a devoted husband. She would accept this for what it was - a strategical decision and nothing more.

So, he subtly nodded and accepted the challenge.

"Yeah." A bit of reluctance still clear in his voice, Jed stood to flip his jacket over his shoulders. "I need to get home before my girls get out of school."

And with that, he left.

It had been a week since Abbey broke the news about the public policy initiative. In that time, they barely had a moment's privacy. A few troubled glances had been exchanged from across the breakfast table, a few strained phone calls left them practically speechless, and a few 'goodnights' were whispered when she came home from the hospital after he had already gone to bed, but for the most part, their hectic schedules conspired to keep them apart.

Abbey had spent the night at the Hanover house four nights out of the past seven, returning early in the mornings to have breakfast with the girls. It wasn't that unusual. In fact, they hadn't yet sold the Hanover house because Jed frequently encouraged her to stay there instead of hitting the road to Manchester late at night. But this week, the time Abbey spent away just added to the tension between them.

He drove up the gravel driveway to the farmhouse that afternoon, confused when he noticed her car parked out front. He called for her when he walked inside, then followed the sound of squealing and laughter towards the door that led to the backyard.

Two sets of dampened footprints shaded the concrete outside and little orange floaties sat among the towels draped over a lounge chair. Visibly nervous, Zoey held on to the side of the pool, her arms completely free and her legs kicking against the pressure under the shallow water as she twisted her head over her shoulder to search her mother's gaze.

"Come on, Zoey. You can do it. I won't let anything happen to you." Abbey only three feet away with her hands extended, waiting for Zoey to swim to her.

A spark of fear initially forced him to push open the screen and breeze through the small crack in the door, but once outside, his fatherly instincts subsided, allowing him to slow his pace. This was Abbey's thing. She had taught Liz and Ellie how to swim and though they were a little older, he realized Abbey would have never taken the step with Zoey if she wasn't ready.

Still, his heart went out to his little girl as he saw her biting down on her bottom lip, pondering the task at hand. Suddenly, her arms splashed hard in the water and she dog paddled towards Abbey, soaking the abandoned concrete rim until she reached the safety of her mother's embrace.

"I knew you could do it! I'm SO proud of you!" Abbey lifted her up and held her close as Zoey cuddled up tight.

"I do it," she screamed against Abbey's shoulder.

"Yes, you did do it!"

His boisterous chuckle instantly revealed his presence and both Zoey and Abbey turned to see Jed approaching. "I saw you do it too, Sweetheart! That was terrific!"

"Daddy!" Zoey held out her arms for Jed.

"Sweetie, you're going to get Daddy all wet," Abbey told her.

"It's okay." Jed retrieved a towel from the nearby chair and held it out as Abbey lifted the little girl out of the water. "Did you have fun?"

Zoey nodded, squirming in his arms to get back into the pool. "Daddy, swim with us?"

"Maybe later, Zo." He grabbed Abbey's towel when he noticed her stumbling towards the stairs. "Here."

"Thanks."

As she dabbed the moisture off her skin, Jed couldn't help but admire her buxom figure now exposed against the wet and clingy red one-piece swimsuit. Her hair contoured her cheekbones, spiraling down her naked face in springy curls and dripping drops of water onto her bare shoulders.

"I didn't expect you to be home," he said.

"It's my day off."

He had lost track of her schedule, a testament to how little time they had spent together in the past several days. "Oh. I was going to pick up the girls."

"Don't worry about it. Lizzie said she's riding the bus and I'm going to get Ellie because we have to pick up her First Communion dress at the seamstress and pick out a pair of earrings."

"You're doing that today?" he asked, following her inside.

"It's the only day I can. If you'll do me a favor and get Zoey into some dry clothes then put her down for her nap, I can go get ready. I need to run to the cleaners before I pick up Ellie."

"Of course." Jed lifted Zoey onto his shoulders while Abbey wrapped the towel around her, tucking the corner under her arms as she trailed behind father and daughter on the trek upstairs.

Once Zoey was asleep in her bed, he was drawn to the master bedroom where he knew he'd find Abbey. The scent of her perfume still lingered in the air and he snuck up behind her to help her with the clasp to her necklace.

"Thanks." Her hands fell to straighten the silver pendant as Jed wandered slightly, stopping right in front of her vanity and picking up the papers that sat on top.

"Is this the petition?"

"Yeah. I'm stopping in Concord on my way to work tomorrow morning to drop it off at the attorney general's office."

"Wow."

"What?"

"I was going to recommend you do that. You're already a step ahead of me."

"I don't want to be caught in a loophole with this thing, Jed. I've read the state election laws. I'm doing it by the book. You may be the politician, but I'm not exactly incompetent."

"Whoa! I never said you were. I never even thought it."

"Sorry. It's already been a long day and I guess I'm cranky." She slipped her feet into a pair of heels. "I've been thinking that school gets out next week and if we want Lizzie to help out with the babysitting all summer, we may want to raise her allowance."

"That's a good idea."

"Also, it's important that we start teaching Zoey how to swim, or at least doggy-paddle to stay afloat. I know she's only two and a half, but I feel like I have to try because I don't feel comfortable leaving her here with anyone knowing how much she loves sneaking outside. So I'm going to need your help with lessons on the weekends."

"Absolutely." He followed her erratic movements around the room as she ran a brush through her damp hair and searched for her purse.

"I made you a sandwich in case you haven't had lunch yet. It's in the fridge. Turkey on rye just the way you like it with some grapes, apple squares, and those nutty bars you like so much."

"You always lecture me when I eat those."

"Not today," she returned warmly before she left the room and jogged down the steps.

"I won't ask why." He grinned as he embarked on a pedestrian tailgate all the way downstairs.

"There's also some pasta salad for you and the girls when Lizzie gets home. Make sure you pick the olives out for Zoey and let her snack on the noodles and dressing. She likes that. Around 5:40, I'd appreciate it if you could put the chicken casserole I made for dinner in the oven. I'll be home around 6 and I'll pick up something for dessert on my way. I ran out of time to bake anything."

"Abbey, today's your day off. Have you had a moment to relax?"

"I'm fine."

"I'm just saying..."

"I told you when I got into this that I'd find time to do everything. I meant it."

A pang of guilt hit Jed as he remembered the words he threw at her during that argument. He never believed that Abbey would neglect her family, but anger motivated his actions that morning and though that anger had now faded substantially, it was obvious there was still some hostility floating between them.

He wondered if maybe with a touch of her arm or a stroke of her cheek, she would turn to him so he could envelope her in a comforting hug and shower her with forgiveness. He was confident she wouldn't ignore the gesture, for he knew that the past week had been just as miserable for her as it had been for him. He sensed it in the fatigue he could see in her swagger, probably due to restless slumber the night before. Brown smudges outlined her eyes and she seemed frazzled when she spun around herself to gather her belongings.

He wanted to fix things and he wanted to begin that evening at dinner. But something else happened that night. Through no fault of his own, the subject that caused all the problems in the first place dominated the discussion.

"Why is there a petition upstairs asking Dad to make drugs legal?" Lizzie asked her parents.

Abbey turned a curious glance towards Jed, then looked back at her daughter. "Where did you see that? Were you going through our room?"

"No. One of the pages fell on the floor in the hall just outside your door."

Liz was still in the dark and that's exactly where Jed wanted to keep her. "Lizzie, that's not something for you to worry about."

Abbey nudged her husband. "I think we should tell her. It's going to get some press coverage. She'll find out anyway."

"Find out what?"

"I don't think this is a good idea," Jed insisted. "But I'll leave it up to you."

Confident in her proposal, Abbey began. "I'm trying to get the state legislature to consider allowing patients to use marijuana as a form of medicine."

"Medicine?"

"Does it help them, Mommy?" Ellie questioned.

"I think it does, yes."

Her curiosity piqued, Lizzie furrowed her brows. "So you're saying that pot is actually good for you?"

"No, no, no, no, no," Jed answered before Abbey. "Your mother is NOT saying that pot is good for you." He glanced at his wife. "Are you?"

"No, I'm not. Marijuana is VERY harmful for you, Lizzie. I haven't changed my stand on that. But for certain patients, it does help them not feel as sick as they normally would."

"So then it's not totally bad for you?"

"For you, yes, it is."

"But it's not bad for others?"

"Not all the time. It's complicated, Sweetie."

"I thought you said it was bad, always for everyone."

"Most of the time, it is."

"You don't let me hang around Sandi because she tried pot once at her friend's Sweet Sixteen party. ONLY ONCE. You said I couldn't go to her house anymore or hang out with her after school."

Abbey fidgeted uncomfortably. Explaining the issue to Jed and his colleagues was one thing. Trying to get her fourteen-year-old daughter to understand the implications of what she was doing was quite another.

"That's right. I did. I didn't want her smoking it around you and I didn't want you tempted to try it. You know how your father and I feel about you ever even experimenting with drugs."

"She doesn't do it anymore. It was only that once!"

"Once is enough."

"And why are you so worried about it when you want Dad to make it legal for other people?"

"Not teenagers."

"Wait! So it's okay for your patients, but not anyone else?" Liz had just crossed the line from confusion to rebellious sarcasm.

"Doctors believe it can be beneficial for certain people. CERTAIN people."

"What if it makes Sandi feel better too? How come you get to decide who it can be legal for?"

"Because I'm a doctor," Abbey snapped. "I can see the effect it has on the human body. It's good for some people, but it can be severely damaging to others. That's what I'm trying to emphasize."

"I don't understand why it's okay for who you say but not anyone else. It doesn't make sense! Either it's good for people or it's not."

"It's not a black and white thing. If you'd calm down and stop acting like a child, you'd see that." That was unfair and Abbey knew it. She wanted to take back the words the moment they escaped her lips, but it was too late.

"I'm not acting like a child. I just don't get it because you're being a hypocrite!"

"Hey," Jed intervened. "That's enough."

A few minutes passed and Abbey's temper had simmered enough to allow her to adopt a softer approach. "You're right. You're not a child. You're mature enough to hear this and I'll be happy to explain it to you later, Elizabeth, but you're going to have to change your tone."

"Whatever."

Nothing else was said during that meal. Jed and Ellie ate in silence. Abbey and Liz twirled their utensils around the plate, but neither finished their dinner. The only sound heard in the next half hour belonged to Zoey. The two-year-old who was usually oblivious to the conflict around her, didn't utter a single word, but she used her suppressed energy to repeatedly smash her food with her spoon before swirling it around the tray of her high chair.

After dinner, Abbey retired upstairs while Jed and Liz cleared the table and washed the dishes, giving him a chance to address the teenager alone.

"Regardless of what's happening with your mother and me, I want to be perfectly clear," he told her. "Pot is not something that's good for YOU. No matter what, you are not to try it - ever."

"Fine."

"Your mom didn't mean what she said to you, but I'm not happy with your behavior either."

"I don't understand how the rules can be different. If people are sick, wouldn't pot make them sicker? And if not, then if they're healthy, how can it make them sick?"

"Ask her those questions. I'm sure she'll answer them. But don't disrespect her. She's not a hypocrite. You know that." His warning was spoken softly. Gentle, yet firm and Liz acknowledged it with a nod.

"Yeah."

"I get that you're confused, Lizzie, but this is her field. Not mine. Not yours. It's something that's important to her and neither you nor I have given it the attention it deserves."

"Maybe," Lizzie conceded. "I'll apologize to her when we're done."

He got through to her. Now it was time to follow his own advice and talk to Abbey.

After the girls were tucked into their beds, Jed laid back against his pillow, his head turned to the side so he could watch Abbey dip the bottle of Vanilla Noel lotion and squeeze it into her palms. She rubbed her hands together so furiously, he was convinced it had to hurt and he narrowed his eyes in response. She stopped suddenly when she noticed his stare through the reflection in the mirror.

"You're making me nervous," she said, her eyes connecting with his in the glass.

"Tell me how marijuana can help a cancer patient."

Caught off-guard by his request, she spun around to face him. "You don't have to humor me, Jed."

"Tell me. I really want to know." He patted her side of the bed and, slowly, she walked over to join him.

"It can ameliorate fatigue, help debilitating symptoms like pain, nausea, loss of appetite, and severe weight loss. And it's not just cancer patients. We might be able to help patients with all kinds of diseases, maybe even GRID."

"But it can't extend a life, can it?"

"We don't know that yet."

"But from what you do know. It can't, can it?"

She reluctantly surrendered by shaking her head as she slid her legs under the covers. "We're still learning more every day."

"My point is that even if you could have given Jamie Woodward marijuana, it wouldn't have saved her life. Even if you could have given Megan Carmichael marijuana, it wouldn't have kept her alive and we don't even know, for sure, that it would have eased her symptoms."

"This isn't about Jamie or Megan."

"The hell it's not," Jed countered. When she attempted to turn away from him, he grabbed her hip and rolled her onto her back.

"Jed."

"This is about every patient you ever lost. I was there with you when you came home and told me about the lung cancer that eventually took Jamie's life. I was standing right next to you when you got the nightly updates from Boston about Megan and I held you in my arms all night the day she died. It took me this long to figure it out, but I know that's what this is all about."

"What?"

"You can't stand the helplessness when you lose a patient. You feel like a failure and each and every time, you wonder if it was because of something you did. You wonder if there was more you could have done. THAT'S why you feel the way you do about this. It's an escape from that feeling."

She was sitting up now, agitated. Her right brow was arched slightly. "Stop telling me how I feel or why I think what I do! This isn't guilt because of patients I lost!"

"It's not?"

"No!" she blurted out before taking a breath to stop the tears welling in her yes as she addressed him more calmly. "It's wondering how I could have helped them in their final hours."

With a soft stroke, he caressed her shoulder. "You helped them, Abbey. You did, in the best way you could. You're an amazing doctor. No one expects you to be superwoman."

Her appreciative gaze bore into his sympathetic one. "Thank you for that, Jed, but I have to ask what's the point of this?"

"Of what?"

"This chat. What's the point? It isn't like you've changed your mind."

"I haven't changed my mind, Honey, because there's little evidence it does all the things you think it does. Maybe there will be evidence in a few years, but until then, I don't think there's enough reason to send such a dangerous message to the public. Lizzie's reaction tonight just confirms that for me."

"Then why are we talking about it?"

"Because I should have talked to you about it before, when it came up at work. I'm sorry I didn't."

His apology melted any residual anger she felt and as she looked directly into the sincerity that poured from his twinkling blue eyes, she sighed a liberating sigh and reclined against the mattress. He slipped his hand under her waist, pulling her closer to him. Her head rested against his chest and she listened to his steady heartbeat. His chin just barely grazed the top of her hair as auburn tendrils danced around his lips.

He adjusted his posture, moving away for a moment to lower his lips so he could press them into hers. This was what he had been longing for. It's what he had missed during the past week. Like magic, just feeling her warm body pressed so closely against his made all his discomfort vanish.

"You're not mad at me?" Abbey asked, breaking the kiss and pulling back to leave only an inch of space between them.

"If I was, I'd fight much harder to bury this overwhelming urge to make love to you right now." He swept her forehead with his finger, clearing her face of an intruding strand of hair. "Are you still mad at me?"

"If I was, I wouldn't want you to make love to me right now." She leaned in again, this time, framing his face as she pressed her mouth against his.

Still entangled in their sensuous liplock, Jed eased her onto her back. He fingered the buttons on her pajama top as his head swayed with hers and he kissed her harder. His hands fondled her soft skin and fanned out to rip open her shirt, giving him unrestricted access to the valley between her sexy mounds where his mouth eventually landed. He stopped then as Abbey lifted his shirt over his head and threw it to the side.

While her nails ran up and down his spine with a feather-light touch, he tenderly rolled her breasts with his thumb and when he squeezed, she squirmed beneath him, arching her back and moaning softly. Her legs wrapped around his, enclosing them between her crossed ankles.

So overcome by the passion that erupted between them, their bodies collided repeatedly, meshed together so tightly that they could barely move against one another. It didn't stop them from trying however, for every attempt sparked the kind of friction that sent them down a road towards unadulterated ecstasy.

Jed continued the affectionate assault down her body. His teeth played with the elastic on her pants until she raised her hips off the mattress and he was able to pull them off her legs and discard them at the foot of the bed. Next, he tugged on her panties and as they followed the same journey over her bent knees and shapely calves, Abbey yanked his pants to reveal the bulge still sheltered by his blue boxers. But before she could remove them too, he raised her leg to get it out of the way so he could settle comfortably between her thighs.

He lowered his head and she immediately let out a high-pitched gasp as his tongue invaded the most intimate part of her body. His entire mouth covered her there, greedily devouring her until her head was thrashing from side to side and she was writhing uncontrollably against his face. He didn't stop. Instead, he gently held her knees apart and continued to pounce the area with stronger strokes.

Her legs were quivering now. His masculine hands grazed the slope of her inner thighs to join his lips and he moved slightly to make room for a finger that penetrated her deep inside. The muscles in his tongue constricted to stiffen the limp organ as it massaged the thin flesh of her sensitive nub, driving her out of her mind. He added another finger inside her, twisting them both and pulling them out just past the middle knuckle only to plunge them back in seconds later.

Abbey's moans intensified. Her fingers twisted his hair and scratched his scalp and her heels dug into his shoulders so hard that it would have caused pain if he wasn't so turned on and mesmerized by the depth of her desire. She pushed herself into his mouth and he welcomed the intrusion by continuously sweeping his tongue over her folds and delving his fingers even deeper inside her until her voice caught in her throat as she called out his name. Her gyrating hips finally buckled under his hot breath, nearly paralyzed by the orgasmic climax that rendered her speechlessly spellbound.

Jed held the same position until the initial pulsating wave tapered off and her back fell hard against the bed. It was only then that he removed his fingers and raised his head from between her legs, ridding himself of his boxers as quickly as possible while she was still lost in a rapturous flood of sensations.

Helped by her guiding hands, he crawled up her petite frame and dipped his lips into the delicate skin between her neck and shoulder, smothering her with kisses while she cupped the back of his head and ran her hands through his thick brown hair. Her ankles met just above his rear as she thrust her lower body up against his groin and he instantly crumbled, entering her with deliberate ease and speeding his pace when provoked by the movement beneath him.

From the tip to the base, Jed was all the way in. Abbey summoned her strength to tighten her muscles around him, erotically gripping him every time he pulled out and forcing him to slide in deeper. He went faster when he felt her clutching him so seductively. He slammed against her time and time again until he eventually surrendered his composure, grunting her name in a breathless whirlwind of vibration that ultimately shattered his control.

Embedded fully inside her, he exploded, trembling as he reached the height of sexual gratification. When it was over, his exhausted limbs crashed on top of her.

Abbey rubbed soothing circles across his back and whispered, "I love you" into his ear.

With ragged breaths, he answered, "I love you too, Sweet Knees."

TBC 


	4. Chapter 4

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 4

Disclaimer: The characters depicted in this story belong to NBC, WB, and Aaron Sorkin. We're just borrowing them for some fun :)

Previously: Jed informed his colleagues of Abbey's actions and they asked him to keep an eye on voter reaction to her efforts; Abbey juggled family and work responsibilities in addition to scripting the petition; Liz and Abbey argued when the teenager found her mother's stand confusing and hypocritical; Jed and Abbey made up

Summary: It's morning at the Bartlet's; Jed mediates a squabble that gets Zoey in trouble; Abbey wants to help Liz understand; Jed is intrigued by Abbey's campaign strategy

The warm spring night passed quickly and at the first hint of sunrise, Abbey's lashes began to flutter. Her head was resting comfortably on Jed's chest, her left palm in his right one. His other arm cradled her, holding her so close that it was the rhythm of his heartbeat that had lulled her to sleep.

She sat up quietly, careful not to disturb him as she slipped her fingers from his and smiled when he stirred slightly. There was something serene in that smile, in the genuine emotions that it provoked when she saw it.

She instantly remembered the feel of his masculine hands caressing her as she dozed off hours earlier. She could still sense the way the bed was perfectly balanced with his weight on the other side. It reminded her of all those nights she'd snuggle up to him, reeling from a nightmare, and the way he'd naturally move, even in his sleep, to accommodate her, giving her a whiff of his manly scent and tickling her skin with his warm breath as he did.

She couldn't put her finger on it, but whatever it was in that smile, it made her feel safe. It drew her mind, body, and soul to this man and, without a doubt, she knew there was something inherently flawed about sleeping in a bed away from him, something that always haunted her when she was forced to work an overnight shift or stay in Hanover instead of driving to the Manchester. The past week, it had been even worse, for marital tension had stolen from her seven nights of restful sleep, and it was only now that things were starting to return to normal.

On this morning, she woke up refreshed and eager to start the day.

Birds were chirping outside and the gauzy gold and ivory curtains that flowed aimlessly from the open window created a breach large enough to allow a spark of light to violate the darkened room. She traced imaginary lines over Jed's sleeping form, still naked after their lovemaking the night before. When her hand tipped his chin, she held her hair behind her neck and lowered her mouth to press a soft kiss into his. When she attempted to get up, he grabbed a hold of her head and kept her in place to steal another.

A lighthearted scream escaped Abbey's lungs just before their lips met a second time and afterwards, she stared down at him, grinning. "You were supposed to be asleep."

He only slept when she slept. "I felt you moving beside me. I knew it must be time to get up."

"It's never that easy to wake you." Propped up by the pillow below her arm, she stroked his cheek.

"Today it is. Why are you up so early anyway?"

"I'm dropping off the petition in Concord this morning, remember?"

"Yeah."

"You know I didn't think to ask you. You realize that I didn't change my mind after last night, right?"

"Give me some credit," he answered firmly.

"I'm just saying you were upset when I first told you and I hope everything's okay now."

"It is, Abbey. I'm okay with what you're doing. No, actually, I'm thrilled with what you're doing. I don't agree with you, but I love that you're getting involved in the process."

She smiled again. "I had to make sure."

"But just so we're clear - you're not going to expect any help from me, are you?" he asked with a smile of his own, one reflective of the good-natured teasing that was legendary between them.

"You're saying you wouldn't help me if I asked you nicely?" Abbey moved closer, snuggling up to nibble on his ear.

"Help you hijack my own party's political agenda?" His eyes closed as he succumbed to her kisses. "Not...a...chance."

"Well then. No more of that." She stopped then and moved back, laughing at his subsequent groan. She leaned her head against her hand, supported by the elbow that held her up. "Seriously, I'm fine. In fact, if I get home early enough tonight, I'm going to tour the neighborhood."

"To get signatures? You won't get the paperwork back from the AG today, will you?"

"No, but I'm picking up issue cards at the printer's on my way home from work. I'll leave them on doors so they can read the facts and information about medicinal marijuana and I'll come back in a few days to talk face-to-face."

It was a pretty good plan, Jed had to admit. He took a moment to admire the tone of her voice. It was energetic. Excited. He set out to match it. "Sounds like a great idea, provided no one follows you on your route to collect the abandoned cards before they can be read."

"No one would dare torpedo my campaign," she teased, her fingers tweaking the tip of his nose. "If they did, I would unleash the merciless wrath of a woman scorned."

"No one wants that."

"I wouldn't think so," she said, chuckling.

"I usually do everything in my power to avoid your wrath." He pulled the arm that elevated her head, his warm and eager arms ready to embrace her when she dropped.

"Jed." Abbey giggled as his hands wandered down her back and over the curve of her rear while she laid directly on top of him. "I have to hit the shower."

"You have time."

"Not really. I have to get ready." She betrayed the sentiment with another kiss. "But just for the record, this is my favorite part of making up."

"The sex?"

"The cuddling," she replied.

His gaze twinkled with interest. He raised his head, watching her as she slipped out of bed, nude, and turned to head into the bathroom. When she eventually disappeared behind the beige door, he said softly, "Me too."

Within seconds, the sound of running water penetrated the walls. Jed tugged on the sheets, closed his eyes, and once again, laid back against his pillow, hoping to continue his peaceful slumber.

And he did. At least for a while.

High-pitched wailing jolted him from sleep an hour later. There was only one explanation for the unforgiving screams that echoed from downstairs. He guessed it before he even tore off the covers, and as he sluggishly made his way downstairs, he realized he was right.

Abbey had banished Zoey to her time-out chair.

"I'm sorry she woke you," Abbey said as Jed turned the corner to the kitchen.

"It's okay. What did she do?" He locked into Zoey's depressing stare. Her head was slanted in such a way that he knew she was silently begging him to reason with Abbey. Her feet kicked against the wall in front of her repeatedly as she fidgeted in her seat.

"I told her several times to get her race cars out of the kitchen so I could make breakfast. She refused and when Lizzie bent down to pick up the cars, Zoey hit her in the head."

"You okay, Sweetheart?" Jed asked Liz.

She nodded. "Yeah. She didn't hit me hard."

"DADDY!" Zoey screamed.

Jed approached the little girl, his arms folded in front of his chest as he contemplated her plea. Abbey observed suspiciously. Hoodwinked by each of his daughters from the day they were born, Jed was much more willing to negotiate with them, to bend the rules and spare the punishment if it meant he could dry their tears and make them smile.

Fearing he was ready to surrender to Zoey's whimpering, Abbey warned him. "Don't you dare."

He spun around to face his wife. "I was just going to tell her that she's going to have to stay there until you say she can get up."

"Okay. Go ahead."

He looked back at Zoey, immediately saddened by her scrunched features. "You shouldn't have hit your sister, Zo. I'm afraid I can't get you out of it this time. But I do think you need to say you're sorry to Lizzie."

"I did!"

"You never said you were sorry," Abbey reminded her youngest daughter. "Once you do, you can get up, but not before."

As the two-year-old cried harder, Jed kneeled in front of her. "Hey, calm down. You're not supposed to hit. You wouldn't want someone to hit you, would you?"

Zoey shook her head. "No."

"You could have hurt Lizzie. You wouldn't want to do that, would you?"

"No."

"Then you have to say you're sorry so she knows that you didn't mean it."

With the back of her hands wiping away the moisture on her face, Zoey climbed onto her knees and glanced over the back of the chair at her sister. "I sowwy, Izzie. I didn't mean it."

"Okay, Zo," Liz replied.

"I've been trying to get her to do that for 15 minutes," Abbey whispered to Jed.

"Guess you weren't as charming as I." Jed beamed with the confidence that came from winning this battle as Zoey leapt from her seat and into his arms.

Abbey smirked at father and daughter. "Remember that the next time she sticks her fingers in the outlets."

"Can I help, Mommy?" Tired of waiting for breakfast, Ellie approached the stove.

"Everything's just about done. You and Lizzie can put the toast in the toaster if you want." Abbey watched Liz hovering above Ellie to help her reach the bread and once she did, the seven-year-old extended her hands towards the toaster.

"I can't get it," Ellie complained.

"Here, El." Liz slid the toaster towards her sister.

Abbey gave her a look of appreciation, but Lizzie returned the gesture with only a weak smile. Though they had talked after the disagreement the night before, Liz still didn't grasp her mother's position on medicinal marijuana. She had gone to bed confused and unsure of that ambiguous line which, according to Abbey, made pot dangerous for some, yet beneficial for others.

"Liz, you wanna go to the hospital with me on Tuesday evening?" Abbey asked.

"Why?"

"It'll be girls night out. I have to drop off some files for Dr. Ryder, then I'll take you out to dinner so we can continue our conversation from last night."

Though she acknowledged it was probably a futile attempt to sway her opinion, Liz was open to learning more about a cause that was so important to Abbey. She paused for a second, then asked, "Can we go to Friendly's?"

"We can go to Friendly's. And you can even have a Swiss Chocolate Almond Sundae for dessert, as long as you give me a bite or two. Deal?"

Her eyes lit up and she agreed without hesitation. "Deal!"

"Now that that's settled..." Jed intervened from the kitchen table where he sat with a copy of the Union Leader.

"Yes?" Abbey scooped a dozen scrambled eggs onto a large plate."

"Where are my reading glasses? I can't read my paper."

"Don't we go through this every morning?"

"Spare me the commentary, Hon." He appealed to her maternal side with a subtle tilt of his head, just the way the girls always did when they needed something. "Help me find them please?"

"They were in the study last night, right next to the papers you were grading. If they're not there, check on the floor under your desk." She jumped when she felt the feather-light touch of his hand across her rear as he snuck up behind her.

"I knew you'd know," he mumbled in her ear.

"I know all, Love." And with a saucy grin, she returned her attention to breakfast. "Everything's ready so wash up on your way back."

Jed swaggered down the hall that led to the study. Just as she had said, his glasses were folded beside a red pen and the stack of final exams he had been grading. But as he retrieved them, another pile of papers caught his eye, papers he didn't recognize. They were color-coded and labeled according to county and voting district.

His eyes glossed over the charted streets of Manchester, some of them outlined with neon highlighters and numbered with a black marker. Others left blank or simply marked with three initials - "NRF." He tucked a few of the pages under his arms as he left the room.

"Abbey?" His call bellowed in the kitchen before he even appeared. "What's this?"

Abbey glanced up quickly and answered, "That's what we call a map."

"I know what it is. I mean, WHAT is it?"

"I made a map of every district in the state. I have to distribute them to my district leaders."

"Your what?"

"The person who's responsible for collecting signatures in a particular district. I have several already." She stood to take the maps out of his hands.

"District leaders. How many do you have exactly?"

"Well, I'm handling most of the districts in Hillsborough County. I need someone for districts two and three in Sullivan County, districts four, seven, and eight in Grafton County, districts six and seven in Cheshire County, and district five in Belknap County."

"You know that from memory?"

"I've been staring at the maps for three days, Jed. I know exactly what's covered and what isn't."

"Aside from those districts, you have everything else covered?"

"Yeah."

He nodded as he absorbed the information. "And what does 'NRF' mean?"

"That's the home of a non-registered family. Instead of getting call sheets of just the voters, I cross-referenced the stats I got from the Secretary of State's Elections Division and each county's Supervisor of Elections with the community guides at the library so I could identify homes that don't have a single voter inside."

"To avoid them?"

"To get them registered. I'll sit down with them and help them figure out the registration forms."

"Abbey." Jed shook his head. "I'm really impressed with all the work you've done, but this is a state election with a lot of small districts. Doing what you want to do in Manchester alone will take you months. The state parties handle the local GOTV rallies. Leave it to them. If you spend your time going door-to-door to fill out voter registration forms..."

"GOTV?" It was her turn to be confused.

"Get Out The Vote campaigns."

"Oh, right."

"Anyway, what you need to do is just hit the sidewalk. Go to each house, introduce yourself, tell them what you're doing. If they're not registered, give them the paperwork. But you can't spend the precious time you have filling it out for them."

"Well, I think I can."

"Abbey, you really can't."

"We'll see. In the meantime, you do it your way, Jed. I'll do it mine." She was well aware that her political naivete was likely to cause problems, but she wanted to learn on her own.

"Fine. I just wanted to throw that out there."

"And I appreciate it." She began to fold the maps until he took one of them from her. "Jed? Are you surprised that I did it this way?"

'Surprised' was an understatement. Jed never doubted Abbey's ability, but he hadn't expected such a detailed strategy this early in the game. He had been focusing entirely on his intimate knowledge of the district, his broad economic expansion ideas, and his extraordinary communication skills to convey his message to the voters.

The fact that Abbey had devised a plan focused more on the data and statistics that would help her get the votes he hadn't counted, as well as the votes he already expected, muddied his original predictions. He realized for the first time, she had a different formula, one that could easily spell success.

"Jed?" she repeated as he examined the map.

"No, not at all. I'm not surprised. I'm just looking at this thing. This is our district."

"Yeah."

"It's interesting the way you have some of it labeled, not just by registered party but by profession and likelihood of a vote in your favor."

"Like you said, the time I have is precious. I don't want to waste it and I don't want to be caught off-guard."

He nodded again. "You know, pretty soon, I'm going to have to actually challenge you on this and make my position known to the constituents. This would really come in handy."

"Yeah, I bet it would."

"We could canvass together. You could take one side of the street, I could take the other. Then we could switch. Maybe even visit some homes together. I bet it would even be fun if we..."

"Get your own map, Babe." Abbey snatched it from his grasp and threw him a smile as she cocked her head to the side.

TBC 


	5. Chapter 5

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 5

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Abbey offered to take Liz out to dinner to explain her stand on medicinal marijuana; Jed was intrigued by Abbey's campaign strategy to register all the non-registered voters in the district while trying to get signatures for her public policy initiative

Summary: Zoey manipulates a willing Jed; Jed asks Leo's advice regarding his own campaign; Liz considers a summer "job" at the hospital and reminds Abbey that she's not a little girl anymore; Abbey helps Liz understand her position; Jed admits something to Leo

"What have I told you about climbing up there, young lady?"

Jed stood across from his youngest daughter. His arms were folded in front of his chest and his eyes erupted with displeasure until Zoey snapped her head towards him, giving him a glimpse at her chocolate-covered mouth, hair, and clothes. Only then did a small smile break his stern glare, despite his best efforts to hide it.

She had climbed up on a chair and made herself at home on top of the kitchen table. Her fingers dripping with frosting, she held up a few brownie crumbs and smacked her lips as she replied. "Sowwy."

"I turn my back for one moment...you know you're not allowed to be up there." With a disapproving shake of his head, Jed approached. "And I baked these brownies for Uncle Leo. I told you you couldn't have any until he got here."

"Sowwy," Zoey repeated, her contrition obvious in the way her pretty green eyes fell to the ground.

Jed didn't ignore her gesture of remorse. He sighed, then slipped a finger under her chin to lift her head. "Well, don't just leave it at that. Were they any good?"

His tone was calm and jovial and with the sudden realization she wasn't in trouble, the toddler looked up at her father, enthusiastically giggling as she nodded. "Hmmm Mmmm!"

"I expect you to tell Mom that when she gets home. In the meantime, let's get you cleaned up and changed." Zoey held out her arms and when he scooped her up, she playfully smeared her chocolatey fingers over his face. "Hey! You're going to pay for that, you little hooligan!"

Jed hit the steps so vigorously that his bounce provoked a cackling scream from Zoey. Finally, after reaching the top, he noticed the messy handprints on his collar. The little girl simply shrugged as he set her down on his bed to examine his shirt.

"Daddy messy."

"Yeah, thanks to who?" He lightheartedly rolled his eyes when Zoey laughed. "Okay. So we get you into a new outfit and we get me into a new dress shirt."

He held opened the closet door and one shirt immediately caught Zoey's attention. "This one?"

"You like this one?" She nodded. "Okay, this one it is." He laid it out on the bed. "Now what about you?"

"This one!"

"The red outfit? With the horse on it? That one's old. We bought you a dresser full of new summer clothes. Don't you want to wear one of those?"

She shook her head. "No."

"That's a shame because the red shirt has a hole in it. Mom said you can't wear it anymore. Sorry."

Zoey led Jed into her room. With the clean tip of one finger, she pulled out the forbidden shirt from its hiding place in the toy chest and pressed her index finger to her lips just as she had seen Lizzie and her friends do in front of her whenever she intruded on girlish gossip. "Shhh."

And that's how the corruption began. At least, on this day. A sly grin and a secret pact about an old and worn T-shirt that she had outgrown long ago, transformed Jed from parent to confidante. He wasn't oblivious to the way his daughters could manipulate his authority as they effortlessly played the strings of his heart. Sometimes, he rebelled against it. Other times, he welcomed it.

A half an hour passed before father and daughter made their way downstairs. Jed, now dressed in the button-down sky-blue shirt Zoey suggested, trailed behind his daughter on the trek to the family room. Once there, Zoey held the hem of her faded red T-shirt and traced her fingers over the black stallion on the front.

"You're gonna get me in trouble." Jed sat on the sofa and stared at her as she fumbled with the lint on the horse. He picked her up when she began to climb up beside him.

She squirmed in his lap to face him and said, "Is okay, Daddy. I sit in time-out with you."

He laughed. "You bet you will. And I'll tell you what else. You're going to tell Mom it was YOUR idea and that I told you to wear something else..." he paused as soon as he heard the knock at the door. With Zoey in tow, he rushed to answer it. "LEO! You're early."

"Hey!" Jed took the suitcase from his friend and Leo immediately kneeled to greet Zoey. "Hiya, Zoey! You've gotten so big since I saw you last year." Zoey turned a bashful smile to him as he kissed her cheek and ruffled her hair a little, then stood back up.

"I told you I'd pick you up at the airport," Jed said, directing Leo into the living room.

"I know, but I took an earlier flight."

"Why?"

Leo was too proud to admit that a fight between him and Jenny had forced him to leave the house the night before. Instead, he shrugged and answered, "Just cause."

"Everything okay?"

"It's fine."

"When are Jenny and Mallory coming?"

"Friday. Mall's last day of school is Thursday so they're flying out the next morning." The silence around him was deafening. He glanced around briefly. "Where is everyone?"

"Lizzie went with Abbey to the hospitalto drop off some files, then they're going to stop for a bite to eat. Ellie's at a friend's house. Abbey's going to pick her up on the way back."

"Great."

The two men walked into the kitchen where Jed slipped on a pair of oven mitts. "Hope you're hungry. It'll just be me, you, and Zoey for dinner and Abbey made a huge lasagna."

"Oh, well, if Abbey made it, sure," Leo teased. "If you had made it, it'd be a slightly different story."

"Don't you start with me," Jed warned as he opened the oven to peek at the dish. "I'm a fine cook. I even baked some brownies this morning. Your favorite with the chocolate swirls and the nuts."

"So I see." Leo admired the gooey mess on the table with a smirk on his face.

"Yeah, Zoey got to those, but I managed to salvage a few she didn't touch."

"Were they any good?" Leo asked Zoey.

"Uh huh!" Zoey replied as she stretched her tiny body to reach the top of the back of a chair.

"She's absolutely adorable..."

"Don't let that sweet face fool you," Jed interjected. "She can be tricky when she wants to be."

"A daughter of yours? I can hardly believe it!"

Jed acknowledged the sarcasm with a barbed stare. "She gets it from Abbey," he said, pulling off his oven mitts. "Hey, follow me into the study. I want to show you something."

"Something good or something bad?" Leo asked as he and Zoey fell into step behind Jed.

"That depends on what you think."

"About what?"

"About whatever it is I'm about to show you." Jed turned the corner and opened the door to the study. "Check this out."

"Wow." Leo looked at two large maps hanging off the tacks on the wall. Both were so vibrant and colorful, they commanded his attention from the moment he walked into the room.

"You know about Abbey trying to get a public policy initiative on the ballot?"

"Yeah. She and Jenny were just talking about it on the phone the other night."

"This is her map of the entire state," Jed said, pointing to the map on the left. A vertical line of masking tape separated that one from the map on the right. That's the one he pointed to next. "This is my map of our district, and if you turn that page over, you'll see some of the other districts where I have some pull."

"Is she going to mind you showing me hers?"

"Not at all. She hung it up with pride."

"So what's your question?"

"Tell me what my map is missing because however I mix the numbers, hers are still higher."

"By numbers you mean votes?"

"Yeah."

"What difference does it make? You're asking for their vote to put you in office. She's asking for their signature on an entirely different subject. It won't affect the outcome of your election."

"It might, in a roundabout way. If she succeeds in getting it on the ballot in this district, all my voters are going to be looking to me for a response before election day. What I say could very well affect how they vote, so I'd rather avoid the possibility altogether. So, on the off-chance I undermined their interest in Abbey's cause, I need to be ready."

Leo perused the clipped pages. "Frankly, I'm not certain why you have other districts included in your map. Hers I get because it's statewide, but these people in different towns...they won't be voting for you, right?"

"Look closely, Leo," Jed suggested. "There's a method to my madness."

Squinting his eyes to help him see the smaller symbols and digits, Leo examined both maps. The intricate details were similar, yet independently impressive. Jed had countered Abbey's campaign to recruit unregistered voters with a pledge from friends and colleagues outside the district who agreed to endorse him to constituents they already knew.

His map outlined a strategy where every marker plotted one degree of separation from person to person. A diagram that almost resembled a family tree with uninterrupted squiggly lines accurately charting relationships between residents in the district and those he knew outside the borders.

"So..." Leo started. "The Bendeldons live on Elm Street in your district, but what? You don't know them?"

"Not yet. I'll start making my rounds next week and I'll introduce myself then. But in the meantime..." Jed turned to page five. "Peter Williams, one of my old pals from Hanover, has been playing poker with Joe Bendeldon every Sunday afternoon for the past ten years. Peter's already talked to him. He says the vote's mine."

"That's an interesting way to go. The primary for state government is in September, right? You're already campaigning for the general?"

"It doesn't hurt to start early. I never needed to in the past, but I think it's best this time."

"What's this?" Leo pointed to three blue arrows that followed a black line to the end of page one and continued along subsequent pages.

"That house belongs to the Harrisons. They're new to this district and it's no secret they're conservatives. Fortunately, Professor Al Mackenzie who lives in Hanover is an old fishing buddy of a fellow named Rob Taylor from Derry who is the brother of Andrew Taylor in Merrimack who just married the eldest Harrison daughter, Amanda."

"And Amanda's parents..."

"Live right there, in the Harrison house."

Leo furrowed his brows. "Yeah?"

"I didn't say it was a done deal. Al's just going to help me out."

"This is how state government is elected in New Hampshire?"

"Not usually." Jed admonished him with a glare. "But this isn't exactly Illinois, Leo, and Manchester isn't Chicago. It's a small state with even smaller districts. I'm going to be doing what I do every election year. I'll go around, meet the constituents, shake their hands, and drop off issue cards. I just want to cover all my bases in case..."

"In case what?"

"In case the Republicans, for some reason, choose someone who agrees with Abbey and has no problem taking advantage of the fact that I don't. If it turns into a fight over medicinal marijuana, every vote is up for grabs."

His voice held a hint of fear Leo detected immediately. "Why don't you just tell Abbey you'd rather she not do this?"

"Why would I do that? I already told her I was fine with it and I am."

"Then why do you sound scared?"

"I'm not scared, Leo. Abbey doesn't have the support she needs. Her goal is to make noise and that's what she's doing. I'm just gearing up for the what-ifs."

While Jed explained the situation to Leo, Abbey was preparing to explain it to Lizzie. But before the two made their way out of the hospital, a familiar sound impeded their progress. Lizzie stood grounded to her spot, watching as Abbey rushed back to the nurse's station.

The whole thing was over in seconds, but it seemed like so much longer, especially to the fourteen-year-old who always hated hospitals and even on this night, tried her best to avoid being there.

She assumed the smell would assault her senses. It was supposed to remind her of the nights they spent in the E.R. when she was a little girl suffering from a bad case of the flu or a severe stomach ache or even the sprained ankle she got when she jumped out the tree her father had told her to avoid.

She expected it to spark the memory she had buried deep in her mind - the memory of her mother, lying battered and bruised in a dreary hospital room after surviving a violent attacked by a psychopath, or of the time she visited her little sister in the neonatal ICU. So tiny and weak, the newborn baby girl was attached to a web of machines.

But she remembered none of those things. The distinct scent that lingered in the cardio-pulmonary wing of the hospital wasn't as offensive as she thought it would be. In fact, she hardly noticed it.

Since they had heard the code seconds earlier, nothing else had mattered. She had barely moved. They chaos and hysteria around her was now slowing down, but doctors and nurses still floated past, each rushing with the same kind of urgency she had only ever witnessed on Trapper John, MD.

"Excuse me," a girl called out to her.

Lizzie looked up, surprised to see the blonde teenager who worked there. She stepped aside to allow the girl access to the desk, and when things settled down enough to jolt her from her spot, she approached Abbey. "Mom, what's going on?"

Abbey left the side of Dr. Ryder and faced her daughter. "It's okay. They had an emergency in one of the rooms."

"What happened?"

"A patient was having trouble breathing momentarily, but they helped him."

"So everything's okay now?

"For the most part."

Liz turned her glance to the blonde teen she had seen moments earlier. "That girl over there, in the pink and white checkered uniform. She works here? She's like...my age. Who is she?"

"She's a candy striper."

"Oh, a volunteer?"

"Yeah." Abbey swung her purse over her shoulder as they began walking towards the elevator.

"How do you do that? I mean, she really is my age, isn't she?"

"I don't know how old she is, but candy stripers can be as young as 14."

Amazed, Liz's eyes lit up. "Really?"

"Yeah." Abbey curiously arched her brow. "Lizzie, are you interested in...maybe you'd like to find out more about it? It's a great way to spend the summer."

"Would I get to work with you?"

"Well, I sometimes work 17-hour days and I doubt you'd want to be here that long, so we'd have to depend on your father's summer schedule. I'm sure he'd be happy to give you a lift to the hospital on his way to work."

"Would I still get to see you do your job...you know, during the day?" It was obvious one motivation was spending more time with her mother. Lizzie hadn't yet reached the point of teenage seclusion.

"I'll tell you what. Unless I'm in surgery, you can work with me for at least some portion of each shift. How does that sound?"

"Will the hospital be okay with that?"

"We can go see the volunteer coordinator right now if you want."

Lizzie nodded. "Okay!"

"You know, most fourteen-year olds don't want to hang out with their mothers, especially at work. I'm THRILLED you want to do this, Baby Doll."

"Yeah," she replied, her enthusiasm fading slightly.

Abbey put an arm around her as they continued walking. "We can have lunch together and you can catch me up on what all the candy stripers are up to. I'll tell you what we're..."

Liz stopped. "Mom, can I be honest about something?"

Abbey looked at her, concerned. "Always. You know that."

Liz hesitated slightly. "Um."

"Elizabeth, what is it?"

"It's just...I am fourteen and I'm going to be starting high school in the Fall."

"Yeah?"

"So, could we kinda chuck the 'Baby Doll' stuff? I mean, it's cute and all, but I'm too old for it."

Initially speechless, Abbey paused to gather her thoughts. "Oh...well...yeah. Of course. If that's what you want."

"I hope that doesn't make you mad."

"Don't be silly. I'm not mad at all. I love you. Whatever you want...Liz." It was a struggle to refrain from using other terms of endearment, but she did.

She was honest when she said she wasn't angry. It wasn't anger that controlled Abbey's emotions. It was the prickly sadness that accompanied the reminder that her little girl was growing up - a lot faster than she wanted her to.

There wasn't much time to think about it though because as mother and daughter sat across from each other in a booth at Friendly's, the conversation took a different turn and soon, they formed a new bond.

"So you're saying that the people you want to give the drug to are going to die anyway?" Lizzie asked, calmly trying to grasp the complexities of Abbey's argument for medicinal marijuana.

"Some of them, yes. And the ones who aren't dying, are sometimes so sick that some of them wish they were. The people who would benefit from it are people who are on chemotherapy or are ill because of other symptoms of their disease or side effects of alternative medication."

"And it makes them feel better again." It wasn't a question. Liz was starting to understand.

"Yes," Abbey confirmed. "It helps with their pain, their nausea, their fatigue. They are battling serious diseases that can keep them bedridden for months at a time. Marijuana can help their overall quality of life tremendously."

"If marijuana helps with nausea, how come you don't give it to me when I have the stomach flu?"

"Because it isn't a safe drug for healthy people. When you have the stomach flu, your body is trying to purge your system of toxins. You have to let it do that and trust that when it's over, you'll feel well again. Some of the patients I'm talking about may never feel well again. They'll be sick until the day they die. That's the difference."

"I mean, I get what you're saying, but if it's as good as you think it is, then how come Dad's against it? He wants to help people too, so why wouldn't he support it?"

The true heart of the matter. Jed's opinion meant the world to Lizzie and most of her doubts stemmed from his. Abbey took a deep breath before answering. "Because of lack of scientific evidence, your dad disagrees with me. I have the opinion I do because of what I know about the body's physiology...about how it works and what happens when a new agent is introduced to stimulate the immune system or the..."

"Mom, I don't really understand that."

"That's okay." Abbey chuckled. "You don't have to. I just don't want you to think I'm a hypocrite when I tell you to stay away from drugs while I rally to make this legal."

"I don't think you're a hypocrite. I was just mad the night I said that. It makes sense though now that you explained it to me. But I'm still confused about what this means for Dad. He won't lose his election, right?"

"Lizzie, I promise you. If your father was in danger of losing this election, I would stop what I'm doing immediately."

Back at the farm, Leo asked Jed a similar question. "If your opponent does challenge you on this issue, are you going to tell Abbey to back off?"

Jed shook his head. "This is as important to her as my seat is to me. It's not like she's taking votes away from me. She's just trying to spread her own message, completely independent of mine. I'm not going to make her feel guilty about it. I can't derail her efforts."

"What if it costs you votes?"

"I won't let it," Jed answered firmly.

Meanwhile, at the restaurant, Lizzie handed an extra spoon to Abbey, then took a bite of her Swiss Chocolate Almond Sundae. "So if I wanted to help one of you, I wouldn't be hurting the other one?"

"No, you wouldn't. I know how much you love helping your father with his campaigns. I expect you to do exactly what you've always done."

"What if, this time, I want to help you also?"

"You do?"

"Yeah. I want to learn more about what you're both doing, so I want to help both of you. If you want me to."

"I would love the help, Lizzie!"

As they enjoyed the rest of their sundae, Leo stood inside Jed's study and glanced at the maps one last time. "I still think you're not being straight with me."

"About what?"

"You're worried."

"I am not. It's the what-ifs, Leo. I'm preparing for the what-ifs."

"If you weren't concerned, you wouldn't have come up with this who-knows-who strategy," Leo insisted.

"I have to be honest. I'm getting tired of you mocking my strategy."

"It's a good strategy for a race this size. It's just...I don't know...it's unlike you."

"What does that mean?"

"I've known you for 20 years, Jed. You like to persuade people yourself. You do it with your words, spoken from your heart." Leo held up page five of Jed's map. "Not like this. Not with these lines. They don't represent you. They don't represent what you stand for, what you want to accomplish."

"I'm still going to talk to these people. I just might need some back-up. That's all."

"You're worried."

Resting his back against his desk, Jed scanned the room. His eyes landed on Abbey's map and he said softly, "Yeah. Maybe a little."

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Admitting he was concerned, Jed asked for Leo's advice about his campaign; Liz considered working as a candy striper over the summer; Abbey helped Liz understand her position

Summary: Abbey organizes a panel discussion about medicinal marijuana; Jed and Leo show up at the discussion where Jed is cornered by an inexperienced reporter interviewing Abbey; Abbey confronts Jed when she finds out about the deal he made with his colleagues; Jed reaches out to a hurt Abbey

"You ready?"

"Definitely!"

She walked with such confidence. Her head held high, she swaggered down the stairs and with the first click of her stiletto heels, Jed and Leo deserted their chess game and turned their eyes towards her. She was a vision, from head to toe.

Her straight and shiny brunette tresses fell to the very top of the tailored red knit suit that tightly hugged her waist just as well as it gripped the curve of her hips. Golden buttons accented the bodice below the teasing neckline that revealed only a hint of cleavage, and the long sleeves were trimmed with matching cuffs that subtly scraped the bannister.

Delighted to steal her husband's attention, Abbey continued to saunter down the steps, her hourglass figure dancing provocatively in the formfitting suit. Jenny, Mallory, Lizzie, and Ellie followed her down.

"Hey." Abbey addressed the two men when she reached the bottom.

"Hi." Jed stood to examine her new look. "You changed your hair."

"Yeah. Jenny and the girls helped me dye it. You like it?"

"It's brown."

"Well, it's always been somewhat brown."

"Yeah, but it was reddish-brown. I kind of liked the auburn."

She ran her nails through a few strands to straighten any tangles. "So you don't like it?"

"I didn't say that. I just have to get used to it."

"I think she looks hot!" Liz said, standing behind Abbey.

"Me too!" Ellie added.

"Me three!" Mallory echoed.

"She always looks hot," Jed replied. "All I'm saying is...it's different."

"In a good way," Leo finished.

"You're gorgeous," Jed assured her. "I'm just surprised. I mean, new hair, new suit - which I love by the way. What's up? Where are you going?"

"I'm participating in a panel discussion about the beneficial affects of medicinal marijuana."

"Where?"

"The rec center."

"Our rec center? Why would they hold something like that there? Why not some place more formal, more professional?" Her coy smile answered his question. "You set it up."

"I did," Abbey admitted. "We'll be taking questions from the audience, which I expect will be filled with quite a few constituents from Manchester."

"You're taking petitions?"

"I am. And I sent out a press release, so I'm hoping for some media coverage."

"How many signatures do you have already?" Leo asked.

"One-fourth of what I need for this district, but I just started."

"Abbey's really making progress," Jenny told her husband. "The girls and I are going to go down to the rec center to help her out. You don't mind, do you, Jed?"

"No, of course not. I'll keep an eye on Zoey."

"She's taking her nap," Abbey responded. "When she wakes up, do me a favor and make sure she eats something. She didn't have much breakfast."

"She didn't have much dinner last night either. Is she feeling okay?"

"She's fine. She's just giving us a hard time. She's so picky about what she eats these days. Ellie was the same way at this age."

"So was Mallory. Thank God my mother was around to help me because I don't think I would have ever gotten Mallory through the terrible twos by myself." Jenny laughed as she said it, a lighthearted comment not meant to hurt any feelings or ruffle any feathers.

But that wasn't how Leo took it. His sensitivity was a direct result of his guilty conscious, the pestering doubts that overwhelmed him with the knowledge that, at times, he was an absentee parent. "By yourself? It's not like you were a single parent."

"I didn't mean to imply I was."

"You just did." The tone of Leo's defensive reply wasn't lost on Jed and Abbey, nor was the pained glance that Jenny shot him from across the room before she breezed past him.

To the McGarrys, this wasn't unusual. To the other spectators, it seemed to come out of nowhere. The snappy exchange silenced everyone, sparked by such tension between husband and wife that no one dared to question it. Eight-year-old Mallory had grown accustomed to the awkward interaction between her parents and after she instinctively glared at them to stop, she lowered her head to leave the room.

Not single word was spoken between Leo and Jenny that afternoon. Jed wasn't sure that was a bad thing, for he was certain any further conversation would have ended in a fight.

It would have been easy to dismiss it as a simple disagreement, but he and Abbey were too smart for that. Abbey remembered the problems Jenny and Leo were having the year before and the suspicions she had shared with Jed - suspicions of Leo's drinking. Jed remembered them too. He battled those memories, and all the others that came rushing back.

His desire to avoid interference lost the war with his curiosity once he and Leo were left alone. Before long, as the two men sat across an antique chess table, Jed finally asked, "Everything okay between you and Jenn?"

Leo looked up and with a raised brow, he dismissed the concern. "Yeah."

"You sure?"

"Are we going to talk about this or are we going to play chess?" Many things were open for discussion between the two men, but any time Jed tried to talk to him about his troubled marriage, Leo quickly shut down.

Jed accepted this about his friend without complaint. He moved his pawn towards Leo's side of the board. "We're playing."

"How many signatures is Abbey going to get today?" A little abrupt, but he was eager to change the subject.

"Probably a few," Jed answered without looking up.

"Maybe more?"

"Possibly."

"You gonna ask her?"

"No. I don't really talk to her about her campaign. I find it's better to find out how she's doing on my own instead of prying."

"Better for whom?"

"For her. For our marriage. And for my own sanity. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that she's succeeding, but I'm also surprised at the attention she's already getting inside the district."

Leo studied the board more carefully as he prepared to move his rook. "We could go down there."

"For what?"

"Just to see what's happening. Wouldn't you want to know how much interest there really is?"

"I'm afraid to find out. I was sure the majority would be against this proposal."

"Maybe they are. The only way to be certain is to go down there and see how many showed up. At least then you'll know those people are keeping an open mind about what she's suggesting." Leo's concentration faltered slightly, unintentionally giving Jed an opening.

"Maybe."

"What do you say?"

Jed trapped Leo's king. "First, I say 'checkmate.'" He set down his piece and looked at his opponent. "Now, I say let's go."

They showed up with low expectations. A large crowd gathering to hear a medical panel on a Saturday afternoon wasn't out of the question, but it certainly was unlikely. As they walked through the double glass doors of the recreation center, Jed drew in a sigh.

The discussion had ended and the panelists were mingling with the guests. Beyond the sea of four dozen residents swarming the tables for information pamphlets while signing their names to Abbey's petition, was a party table where Lizzie, Mallory, and Ellie helped to serve punch and finger foods. Each armed with issue cards designed to answer questions, it was obvious they had become Abbey's co-conspirators.

In the corner adjacent to the girls, Abbey stood beside Jenny, talking to a reporter who furiously scribbled notes onto a yellow legal pad. She looked so comfortable, Jed thought to himself. She was confident, energetic, and from what little he could hear, wonderfully articulate. It was a side to Abbey he very much enjoyed seeing.

He stood back, waiting to ensure they were finished before he put Zoey down in her stroller and made his presence known.

The reporter was fairly new to the field of professional journalism. A young man in his early 20s who had been with the Manchester Bee for only two years. He looked up and immediately recognized Jed. "Representative Bartlet. It's so nice to see you again."

Jed extended his hand towards him. "Tom Phillips, right?"

"You guys know each other?" Abbey asked.

"Tom's the one who interviewed me right after I won in 1980."

"Yes, I did. I was an intern back then. Things have certainly changed, for both of us. Now I have to ask you how it feels to disagree with your constituents - as well as your wife - on an issue like this?"

Always the politician, Jed didn't even hesitate. "My wife and I are coping just fine and as for my constituents, they elected me to be their voice in the State House and I believe the majority of them don't agree with this petition."

"Well, quite a few of them signed it this afternoon," Abbey stated politely.

"She's right," Tom agreed, his eyes still focused on Jed. "Many of them in attendance today have relatives suffering from Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer's, and other brain and neurological disorders. Do you think you might be out of touch with the voters?"

"No, I don't," Jed replied flatly. "I've represented this district for two years and before that, I represented the people of Hanover for four. In all my years as a legislator, I have given my constituents and their opinions the utmost respect on every single issue."

"Then why have you not even considered this one?" Tom's own bias dictated his questions, but Jed didn't allow it to faze him.

"Just because I don't agree with it doesn't mean I haven't considered it. Before I formed my opinion, I read up on it and I even talked to a doctor who's in favor of it. It all came down to the fact that legalizing marijuana, even for medicinal purposes, presents a danger to the patients, as well as the public at large, and until there is scientific evidence that the good outweighs the bad, I won't change my mind on that."

Perhaps Abbey would have given credence to his point if one word hadn't caused her to tune out the rest of his answer. Doctor. He had talked to one before he made up his mind. That was the first time she had heard of Jed's consultation with a doctor.

If not for his own admission, she never would have believed that the man who tried so desperately to avoid the debate with her would have gone to another doctor, that he would have argued the drawbacks of medicinal marijuana with someone else in the field when he was so adamantly against involving his her.

She edged past him slightly as she tucked her hair behind her ears and said softly, "I didn't know you spoke to a doctor."

"I did, early on. But it didn't change my mind."

"Nothing will change your mind?" Tom repeated Jed's comments from moments earlier for confirmation. "Even if it's what the voters want?"

"I guess we'll find out what they want IF the measure shows up on the ballot. I don't think it will."

"You'd be surprised how popular it is," Abbey said, biting her tongue before she continued. She turned to Tom. "Tom, it's important that you realize that while my husband doesn't agree with this particular issue, he still shares the vision of most of the voters in this district. He's the best representative they could ever ask for."

"Don't you consider this to be an important issue, Dr. Bartlet?"

"Of course I do, but it shouldn't overshadow what Jed has accomplished and how he feels about the people who put him in office. He's done wonderful things for small businesses in and around Manchester, he's worked with his colleagues from neighboring districts on economic development projects, he's represented the city council and helped them ensure the funds they need for the downtown revitalization project..."

He never doubted Abbey's support, but it was comforting the way she always stood up for him, even if they were at odds. Jed tenderly wrapped an arm around her. "I didn't come here to make this about me. This is Abbey's cause, Tom. I'm sure she can answer all your questions."

"What I'm interested in is how this affects the two of you, being on opposite sides and all. It's for a sidebar I'm doing called Bedroom Politics."

Abbey chuckled as she reached for her waist and slipped her hand in Jed's. "It really hasn't affected us that much. I know where Jed stands, he knows where I stand, and we respect one another enough to leave it at that. We don't fight about it if that's what you're looking for."

"There's got to be some sense of competition in the house. Even if your campaign doesn't affect your husband's election, he does disagree with you and what you're doing, essentially, is recruiting his constituents to give him an order."

"It's not an order. When they sign the petition, they're saying they'd like the issue on the ballot. All we want is a debate with qualified scientists weighing in."

When she finished talking, Jed began. "And I have to point out that Abbey's running a statewide campaign, reaching out to every voter in every district. It isn't something personal between me and her and neither one of us has treated it as such. In fact, I'm thrilled that we both have something on the line this election cycle. Makes it more interesting."

And just like that, they derailed Tom's line of questioning. Enraptured in the way Jed looked at Abbey when he lifted their hands slightly to squeeze hers a little tighter and the smile she gave him when he did, Tom jotted down a few more notes, turned off his tape recorder, and left with the image of an affectionate and loving couple planted firmly in his mind. So in love with one another that no political aspiration was worth manipulating the harmony of marriage.

It was a true reflection of the passionate relationship between Jed and Abbey. Above all else, they were loyal to each other - both in public and alone - and that loyalty had given birth to such a deep level of trust that it could never be fractured. Their love thrived on the unspoken promise of fidelity to the support and devotion that had been the cornerstone of their union.

But on that night, Abbey's trust was tested.

Still raw from the revelation that Jed had sought expert medical advice from someone else while he ignored her opinion, she sheltered herself behind the four walls of the study. A short while later, the already open wound was aggravated further by a phone call she didn't clearly understand. She sat behind the desk, her mind racing with possibilities until Jed opened the door.

"There you are," he said.

She looked up briefly, then glanced back at her book. "Hi. Everyone in bed?"

"Yeah. Ellie and Mallory conned Lizzie into camping out with them, if you can believe it. What are you doing?"

"Studying for the boards."

"I wanted to thank you again for the way you handled that reporter today."

"We did it together. It was no big deal."

He heard the shrill pitch of her voice, the dismissive nature of her stare, and knew instantly that something was wrong. "Okay, spill it. What's wrong?"

Abbey set down her book and slapped the answering machine. It was a message from Brandon Kelley, the Democratic Whip. He spoke fast, yet clearly, and with each syllable that echoed through the room, Jed's jaw tightened just a little more.

"We need stats regarding Abbey's campaign. How many votes she's got, how many people she's talked to, how she's doing out in the field. I've got canvassers ready to handle damage control, so let me know."

A long beep signaled the end of the message and that was the moment that Abbey dropped her pencil and pulled away from the desk. "You might want to call him back and tell him I got close to 40 signatures today."

Jed collapsed into the leather chair across from his wife, leaning forward far enough so that his forearms rested on his thighs. "It's not what it sounds like."

"I can't imagine how it could be different than it sounds. It's pretty obvious he wants the information you were supposed to have, so I guess that's what you've been doing - tracking my progress. That's why you showed up today."

"No, it isn't. I showed up today because I was curious, not because I was going to report back to Kelley. Okay, yes, I did agree to keep an eye on things. Only in the DISTRICT, Abbey. He wanted me to gauge constituent reaction. I don't think there's anything wrong with that."

"He's got people ready for damage control! Every step I make is being watched by you so the state democrats can disrupt what I'm doing?"

He desperately leapt to his feet. "I don't know what Kelley meant by that, but all I agreed to do is gauge interest."

"So how have you been doing that? Have you been following me when I'm out canvassing?" Her tone was dominated by anger, accusatory and laced with sarcasm.

"You know me better than that."

"How are you doing it, Jed? Tell me."

"I haven't done anything yet. Next week, I'm going to start canvassing myself. I'm going to talk to people, just like I planned all along. We've already talked about this."

"I didn't realize why you were doing it."

"This isn't why."

"Isn't it?"

"No, it isn't," he barked, turning away from her. "I'm doing it because it's important. I'm running in this election, too, in case you've forgotten."

"Yeah, Jed, that's it. I forgot. I forgot you were running. That's why I defended your commitment to this district to Tom Phillips today."

"I'm going to go ahead and tell you again that I have NO idea why Kelley said he had canvassers ready for damage control. I'm not a part of that. I'm not keeping tabs on you, but as a candidate, it's important for me to monitor what's happening. If you drum up enough support, that leaves me weak to opposition."

"There's an opponent already?"

"No, but there will be any day now and if he - or she - is smart, he's going to wedge himself between you and me. It's a great way to win this thing."

That was something Abbey hadn't yet considered. Presumably, any opponent of Jed's would be against her proposal, reluctant to embrace it for fear of criticism. But for the first time, she saw a hint of vulnerability in Jed. He wasn't as confident as she thought. In fact, he was quite worried. 

"You think that's going to happen?"

"I think it's a really good possibility and I'll be honest - I'm not looking forward to that. It's not going to be easy to speak out against something that's so important to you."

"This isn't easy for me either. It kills me that we don't agree on this because I don't want to give reporters like Tom Phillips an opening to criticize you."

"I know."

"I want you to win. I always wanted that, even when I considered running against you, I wanted YOU to win. I meant what I said to Tom. None of us could ask for a better representative."

"But it's not just about winning. It's about fighting for what I believe and I believe you're wrong. I'm sorry, Abbey, but I do. The harder you work to secure support, the weaker it makes me. So, yeah, I have to monitor your progress, not by spying on you or invading your privacy, but by talking to people in the community and figuring out where they stand."

Content with his explanation, Abbey backed down. "Okay."

"Okay?"

"You have to do what you have to do. We've both known that at some point you'd have to speak out against this, more than you did today. I'm prepared for that. I just want you to do what's best for your campaign."

"Really?"

"It's not like you're going to be attacking me. It's the issue."

"It is the issue. I'm...I wouldn't hurt you for anything, Abbey."

"I know that. It's a campaign, Jed. I don't know what got into me tonight. I heard the message and I overreacted. I thought you were trying to sabotage me, as silly as that sounds. I guess it was just my impulsive paranoia getting the best of me. I'm sorry."

Jed looked her squarely in the eye. "It didn't even occur to me to sabotage your efforts. I wouldn't spy on you and I would certainly never tell Kelley what you're up to. That wasn't our agreement. It was about the voters. That's all. You believe me, don't you?"

"Of course I believe you. I trust you."

"Thank God." Jed breathed a sigh of relief. "For a minute there, I was worried."

"Don't be." She smiled up at him for only a moment, then looked down to flip the page of her book. "I have to get back to studying."

"You want some company?"

"No thanks." There was still something troubling her. Her cool and detached voice gave her away.

"We're okay, right?"

Abbey nodded. "Yeah."

He knew her too well for that. He suspected what was bothering her, but he wanted validation. "Hey, I was going to bring this up earlier. I didn't know that medicinal marijuana could also be used for Alzheimer's and MS patients."

"You never asked." She stopped then and after a few seconds, she added, "Well, you didn't ask me anyway. I guess the other doctor didn't tell you everything."

Just as he assumed. "Listen, about that..."

"It's not a big deal, Jed."

"It's not?"

"No. I do think it's strange that you live with a doctor, you share a house and a bed with a doctor, and when you needed a medical opinion, you went to someone else."

This wasn't anger he was hearing. His head tilted regretfully as he detected a twinge of sadness in her voice. "Abbey."

"Usually when someone seeks an opinion from an expert, they find an expert they trust and that's what I'm assuming you did. You found an MD whose opinion you trusted."

"I trust your opinion."

"No, you don't. Not on this. And that's okay. I've only been out of med school a few years. I'm still not completely finished with my residency. I don't blame you for wanting to speak to someone more experienced, more knowledgeable."

"No, Abbey. I think you're great at what you do, you know that."

"Can we talk about this later? I really want to get through these questions before bed."

"Abbey..."

"Jed, I'm not mad. I'm not." Her bruised ego kept her temper under control. The only emotion Abbey was feeling was the hurt that came from misguided belief that she wasn't yet a competent physician - at least, not in her husband's mind.

"I don't like leaving things like this. You're still upset. "

"You said you didn't know that marijuana could be used to treat Alzheimer's and MS and all I'm saying is you didn't ask. If you had asked, I would have told you."

"I didn't ask. I know I should have."

Afraid her emotions would overwhelm her at the late hour, she silently took note of his remorse, then pushed her reading glasses to the top of her nose. "I really need to get back to this."

"Are you sure you don't want help? I could quiz you like I did when you were in med school."

"I'm sure. Thanks though." Jed put his hand on the knob, but Abbey stopped him before he left. "Jed? Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

He walked out slowly, shutting the door behind him with such deliberate ease that Abbey didn't even hear it close. As she returned to her book, she struggled to focus, her attention so obviously consumed by the stress of the day.

She always knew this would be difficult, but she never dreamed she'd be engulfed in a storm of doubts and second-thoughts this early in the campaign. Only a few weeks had passed and already she was drowning under the pressure.

It was never supposed to be easy. She just didn't expect that it was about to get a little bit harder.

TBC 


	7. Chapter 7

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 7

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Jed and Abbey defended each other and their marriage when they were cornered by a reporter; Abbey confronted Jed when she suspected he was spying on her for the state democrats; Jed realized Abbey was hurt by his decision to consult another doctor

Summary: Leo hides his alcoholism from Jed; Jenny tells Abbey the real reason the family is going to Europe; Abbey gets a surprise regarding Jed's campaign

The sun had risen quite high over the New Hampshire sky that afternoon. But you'd never know it from the gloomy guestroom upstairs. Here, Leo McGarry paced the floor and occasionally looked out from the corners of the gauzy white curtains to the open field and pasture below.

He heard the squealing and laughter of giddy schoolgirls downstairs, the adult repartee between Jed, Abbey, and their guests, and the ruckus caused by a rebellious toddler who insisted on running around the house at full speed while being chased down the halls by her father. Never had he felt so distant from the signs of life around him. Never had he felt so ignored and, yet, so willing to ignore others.

He reached inside his suitcase for a faded pair of loose-fitting blue jeans that had been deliberately thrown to the bottom. His fingers snaked inside the pocket - the home of a tiny silver flask, one that no one but him knew existed. He twisted the top and pressed it to his mouth, savoring the feel of the liquid just barely wetting the thin membrane of his lips. His eyes closed and he took a sip.

This was the long-awaited glass of water offered to someone roaming the desert, the spark of heat that could calm clammy shivers and fill the soul with a warmth that could only come from the security of a predictable high. The taste energized him. It invigorated his senses. As if a smoldering ember had reignited a crackling flame beneath him, it jolted him. For one lingering moment, he felt alive.

A small blue plastic cup sat on top of the oak chest by the window. With a quick glance to assure no one was coming, he approached it. He fully intended to pour only a bit of the alcohol into the cup, but he made no effort to stop himself as the entire contents of the flask soon mingled with the punch.

"What are you doing up here?"

He jerked at the sound of Jenny's voice. If he hadn't had his back to her, he might not have been able to hide the flask in time. "I'm just taking a breather."

"Jed's been looking for you. You should go find him. I need to pack."

"Everything's about ready to go, isn't it?"

"I have a few more things to fold and I want to straighten up a bit."

"Okay. I'll be downstairs."

Precariously balancing the cup between two fingers, Leo left the room and headed for the stairs. It was difficult to hide in plain sight. Nearly impossible, in fact. He did his best to conceal his steps, but the creaking of the wood gave him away and just as he hit the bottom landing, he was confronted by Ellie and Mallory.

"Daddy, will you play hide and seek with us?" Mallory asked.

"I will, but maybe a little later. I don't think Ellie's mom's going to be too happy about her running around in that fancy white dress."

Ellie glanced down at the lace and satin that defined her outfit. He was right. Abbey wouldn't be too happy. Besides, her brand new Mary Janes would never give her sufficient traction to outrun her opponent. "What if I change, Uncle Leo?"

He kneeled to her level. "Tell you what. Your dad's still carrying around his camera so after another round of pictures, you and Mal go upstairs and change into your play clothes and I'll chase you both around the front yard. What do you say?"

"Okay!" Ellie answered.

"Okay," Mallory agreed, her eyes falling to the cup of punch in his hands. "Can I have a sip of your drink?"

"There's plenty of punch in the kitchen. It's already been poured and it's right next to the cake."

"I just want a little bit."

Leo stood. "Go to the kitchen and get your own."

"Why can't I have yours?"

"Because I said so!"

Picking up on the tone of Leo's sharp response, Ellie took Mallory's hand and led her away. "Come on. I'll get you some punch, Mallory!"

Leo raised his cup for another sip. This time, he gulped down more than half the liquor, stopping only to take a deep breath as he turned around and came face-to-face with Jed. "Are you sulking in the shadows?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Jed replied. "Where'd you disappear to?"

"I went upstairs to get the bags ready. We have to leave for Boston in a few hours."

"I figured."

"Ellie did well today. Mallory was so hyper the morning of her First Communion, we didn't think we'd ever calm her down enough to actually get to the church. Of course, part of that could have been the chocolate donut I gave her that morning."

"Lizzie was the same. Abbey would have killed me if I had given her sugar that morning."

"Jenny probably should have killed me too."

Jed hesitated slightly, nodding and staring at his feet shuffling across the floor. Finally sick of the small talk, he looked up and asked, "Leo, what are you drinking?"

"This?" Leo gestured with his cup. "It's punch."

"Why did you snap at Mallory like that?"

"Were you eavesdropping?"

"I couldn't help but overhear. I was standing right behind you."

The blue plastic had hidden the drink quite nicely. Jed stepped closer to his friend to peek inside the cup, but when he snooped, Leo pulled away so defensively that the alcohol sloshed the rim, a few drops sprinkling Jed's chin. "Damn it!"

Jed wiped the moisture with his finger tips. "I didn't think it was punch."

"I wanted a drink, okay?"

"I've heard that line before. You always want a drink."

"Are you channeling Jenny now?"

"Why are you so cranky? You've been like this since you got here."

"Maybe that's because I don't like being questioned every time you and I see each other," Leo snapped as he walked hurriedly towards the door. "I need some air."

Jed followed seconds later, dropping the empty cup into the trash on his way outside. His frenzied movements came to a halt as he opened the door and saw Leo sitting on the front steps, his shoulders rounded and his face drooping.

He took a seat beside him. "I wasn't trying to start something back there."

"Sure felt like it." Leo waved his hand. "Forget it. I'm just being cranky, like you said."

"The girls wanted some of your drink, Leo."

"I didn't give it to them, Jed."

"You drink a lot, don't you?"

"What are you doing? You know what, don't...don't go there."

"I'm not going to lecture you. It's just...we've been here before. We've talked about this a couple of times, as you well know."

"And every single time, I tell you the same thing. Why would you expect something different this time?"

"Because I'm starting to realize you're one hell of an actor."

Leo's cold, hard expression narrowed as he looked at Jed with no small amount of resentment. "Are you calling me a liar?"

There was a time when Leo's eyes sparkled like the sun's reflection on top of the calm blue waters of the ocean, when his smile turned a dozen heads, when his charm claimed the hearts of the ones he loved. But when he turned his face towards Jed on this day, there was no trace of that man. He had been replaced by one much older, one without the million-dollar grin and the warmth and affection that made him Leo McGarry. Jed was left wondering when his friend had changed so drastically.

People had warned him. Jenny and Abbey had both approached him about Leo, but he had been too stubborn to see it. All he wanted to remember was the Leo he had known since 1960. The person he canvassed with as a teenager outside the Boston headquarters of John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign. The person who had left for Vietnam a few years later, still a boy so scared and unsure, yet dedicated to serving his country. The person who returned from the bloody battlefield as a man, scarred by atrocities he never could share. It was shortly before Jed married Abbey that Leo re-entered the civilian world. Since then, he squelched any references to the war and never addressed the demons that continued to haunt his dreams.

That was the man Jed was seeing now. A shell of his former self, Leo had been lost in his raw emotions and the stress that came from witnessing the horrifying images Jed had only seen on television. This was it. This was what happened to this extraordinary man whose life was forever altered by the memories he buried deep inside his soul.

Saddened by the implication of Leo's question, Jed adopted a softer approach.

"I'm just saying that..." He trailed off, his apprehension now visible in the way he shook his head and sighed. "I'm here to help, if you need me, Leo. I'm always going to be here."

"There's no problem. I'm fine. I drink to relieve tension and it works, most of the time."

"How much tension is there in your life?"

"You'd be surprised," Leo replied somberly. "Jenny's been on my case for weeks. I can't seem to make her happy and that's all I really want to do. I want to make her happy."

"What's going on?"

"Work." He dismissed it carelessly with a frustrated chuckle, unable to admit that his drinking was the main cause of his marital troubles. "You know how it is. You get mad at Abbey when she works late sometimes."

"I'm getting better at it. When Abbey's gone, especially overnight, I miss her. I miss her so much I can't even sleep."

"And then you fight."

"It's not so much fighting as petty bickering. Occasionally, I make an insensitive comment or two, but then I realize she doesn't want to be away any more than I want her to be. It's her career and when I married her, I knew this was going to be her career one day. I have to live with it."

"You should talk to Jenny. I wish she was as understanding as you."

"That understanding goes both ways, Leo. Abbey tries to make up for her schedule by planning quality time with the family whenever she's free. She takes the girls out for a mother-daughter day. She cooks me a candlelight dinner on her days off and then we cuddle up and watch a movie or read together."

"And life's just peachy for the Bartlet Bunch, isn't it? I already got this speech from Abbey last year."

Jed was surprised by Leo's snippiness. He had never been so confrontational. "It works for us, Leo."

"Sorry. That was rude and unnecessary, I know. But the thing is, what you have with Abbey isn't going to work for me and Jenny. Whenever I'm home, she's nagging me about one thing right after another. I find myself avoiding going home for just that reason."

"Then you have to work harder at it. It's not hopeless. I mean, look, you're both trying. You're taking this trip to Switzerland as a romantic second honeymoon. That's a positive sign, right?"

"Hmm?" Leo caught himself then. He remembered the lie he and Jenny had told and instinctively covered his tracks. "Oh. Yeah. Well, as romantic as it can be with Mallory along. Speaking of which, we need to get to Boston before it gets dark."

Jed rose to his feet just after Leo did. "You have time."

"We want to get settled in and get a good night's sleep. Our flight leaves at 6 a.m. tomorrow."

"I wish you could stay another night. I feel like we haven't really caught up."

"On the way back from Europe," Leo replied. "I promise."

"When's that going to be?"

"I really don't know. Maybe a month. We're staying with Jenny's uncle. She's got some cousins in Rome we might see as well, so it's all up in the air."

His flustered reaction did nothing to quell Jed's suspicions. There was more to the story. Of that, he was sure. He nodded and accepted Leo's tale, unaware that Abbey was about to start prodding Jenny upstairs.

She quietly knocked on the door of the guestroom where she saw Jenny making the bed. "You don't have to do that. I'll take care of it."

"I don't mind. You opened your home to us, the least we can do is clean up after ourselves."

"Opened our home? You make it sound like we're strangers. You and Leo are welcome here anytime. You know that."

"I know. I just meant..."

"Things have been rough lately, haven't they?"

"What gave it away?"

Abbey walked around her to grab the ends of the comforter and lay it flat over the mattress before sitting down on the bed. "Just a hunch. You wanna talk about it?"

"You and Jed hit rough spots, don't you?"

"Of course we do. All couples do."

"Then there you go. That's what's happening here."

"It seems like more than that."

"It isn't."

Unlike Leo and Jed, the bond between girlfriends revolved around intimate chats and whispered secrets. It was a recipe that usually worked for Jenny and Abbey and when it didn't, there was always a reason. "You're different. Whatever is going on is taking a toll on you. You don't have to tell me what it is, but if you want to talk, I'm here to listen."

"Thanks."

"Anytime." Abbey stood up, ready to leave the room until she heard Jenny continue.

"All couples hit rough spots and they manage to free themselves, knowing there's a smoother path to take." Jenny collapsed on the bed and remained silent until Abbey joined her. "What if there isn't? How many couples hit a wall or fall head-first into a bottomless pit and still stay together?"

"Jenny, what's going on?"

"I don't know how much longer I can do this."

"You're not thinking of...divorce...are you?" Abbey's curiosity transformed seamlessly into sadness when Jenny nodded. "What happened? I know you've been having problems for a while. Leo told me last year that you guys were fighting over his work schedule and his time with Mallory, but..."

"It's more than that, Abbey. It's so much more." Jenny curled her lips together, fighting the urge to blurt out the root of the problem.

"Tell me." Abbey encouraged her gently.  
"If I do, you can't tell Jed - at least, not until Leo and I leave tonight. I don't want Jed confronting him. If he does, Leo will feel so ashamed, I'm afraid he won't go through with it."

"Go through with what? What's going on, Jenn?"

"We're not going on a second honeymoon. There's a clinic in Switzerland, where my uncle works. He thinks they can help Leo...help him get control over his drinking."

"Oh, Jenny. It's that bad?"

"He's so out of hand, Abbey. Most of our money is spent on booze. It's to the point now where I count the days he's sober rather than the days he's drunk."

"Oh God."

"A few weeks ago, he never came home from work, so I had to call my mom at two in the morning with some ridiculous excuse to get her to come over and watch Mal so I could go find him. Turns out, he had passed out in his office with his face buried in his briefcase."

When Jenny stood, Abbey stood with her. "Your mom doesn't know?"

"No one knows. Leo is SO good at it. He doesn't drink excessively in front of people. He gets drunk in private. He waits until everyone leaves the office and then, he has a little party. Thank God he doesn't drive home."

The story sounded so familiar. Abbey remembered what Jed had told her about Leo's father. He, too, was a closet drinker. A drunk, as Jed referred to him. But there was more there. Abbey remembered thinking what kind of bastard could drink himself unconscious then go home and beat up on his own family. Her heart ached for a young Leo and when she let it, it ached harder for a young Jed. John Bartlet may not have been a drunk, but the similarities between the two men were undeniable.

She took a deep breath, then asked. "I have a feeling I already know what you're going to say, but I have to ask. He doesn't...Jenny, forgive me, but he doesn't get violent or abusive, does he?"

"Oh no. Never. He gets belligerent at times, but he's never hurt anyone. That's just not him."

"I didn't think so."

"He's not a mean drunk. Never has been. The night I found him at his office, I took him home and put him to bed, just like I had a thousand times before. The next morning, I told him I had had enough. I threatened to leave that very day unless he agreed to talk to my uncle."

"He must have loved that ultimatum."

"I had no other choice. I'm glad I did what I did because Leo agreed. My uncle has assured me that no one in the U.S. will know. The program will be completed incognito. I feel guilty even talking to you about it."

"Don't. Jed and I love you guys so much. We just want to help."

"I know. You can tell Jed. Just wait until we leave. If Leo finds out before we get there, he'll back out of the whole deal, and if this doesn't work, I can't stay with him any longer. I can't do it to myself...or to Mallory. She doesn't deserve parents who fight all the time."

Abbey had never before been so grateful for her own marriage. Despite the recent ups and downs, there were no serious obstacles crippling her relationship with Jed. There was obvious stress as a result of the campaign, but even that couldn't crack the firm foundation of their love.

She did as Jenny asked and waited until they left that evening before she tried to talk to Jed. But, even then, she stumbled over the words. Her stammering gave him an opening and within seconds, Leo and Jenny were sidelined by his news.

"Jake Tillman...he's a guy in the district...lives a few streets down..." he told her.

"Yeah? I haven't met him yet, if that's where you're going."

"You will meet him - soon. He was jogging around our neighborhood this afternoon. He stopped by just before Leo and I went inside to let me know that he's filing."

"Filing for what?"

"To run. In the primary. He's challenging me for the nomination."

"Are you serious?" He didn't give a verbal response, but he didn't need to. His drawn features answered her question. "Jed...I don't know what to say."

"It's gonna be fine."

"Yes, it is because you're going to beat him. You're going to win. There's no doubt in my mind that you're going to win."

"Yeah. Well, I thought you should know so you won't be surprised when he calls you."

"When he calls me? Why would he call me?"

"He's on-board with your campaign, with what you're doing. He agrees one-hundred percent. Sounded to me like he wanted your endorsement."

Suddenly, the cool breeze shifted. The sun had risen so high that day, but it disappeared rather quickly and as the rosy hues left in its wake faded into navy blue, Abbey felt a chill creep up her spine. Jed lowered his head, stuffed his hands in his pockets, and crossed in front of her to the concrete steps of the house.

TBC 


	8. Chapter 8

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 8

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Leo continued to lie about his drinking; Jenny told Abbey she and Leo are going Europe so Leo can get help for his drinking; Jed informed Abbey that he has a challenger in the primary, one that might be calling her for an endorsement

Summary: Jed and Abbey share a late-night heart-to-heart

"I said I was sorry." Her emphatic apology did nothing to soften him.

Jed kept his hands on the wheel and continued to stare at the road ahead, only acknowledging Abbey with three little words. "I heard you."

"I admit it was a bad decision," she said. "It's not my first. It probably won't be my last."

"If it was just a bad decision, I could get over it. But it wasn't. This was a calculated attempt to deceive and manipulate me. You used my trust and my love for you to fool me."

"Believe me, I didn't give it that much thought. It was a spur-of-the-moment thing."

"Of course it was." His cynical tone only irritated her more.

"It was."

"Before we left the house, there was one movie...just ONE movie I told you I did NOT want to see."

Abbey sighed as she pressed her back against the seat and looked away from her husband. Since leaving the theater, she had heard this lecture twice. "Yes, I know."

"And when you sent me to get the popcorn, you went to the box office and, in the spur of the moment, what did you do?"

"That's where the bad decision comes in," she mumbled. "We've been over this, Jed. I bought tickets for that movie because I figured you'd change your mind once it started."

"And you can't understand why I'm a little miffed?"

"I never said I didn't understand. I said that if I could take it back, I would."

"You always want to take everything back. You can't. This is life, Abbey. You can't just take things back because they don't work out exactly as you planned."

"Why do I get the feeling we're not just talking about the movie?"

Jed glanced at her briefly, then returned his attention to the road. Twenty-four hours had passed since he found out the man who was challenging him in his election also wanted to court his wife's endorsement. He tried to suppress his feelings, but tempering his emotions had never been more than a futile attempt to suffocate the essence of who he was. He wore his heart on his sleeve and because of that, he sometimes needed space to tend to his wounds in private before he could expose to them to anyone - even Abbey.

They drove in silence for the next several minutes, neither wanting to approach a potential argument. Finally sick of the quiet, Jed broke the tension. "Did you know that the most classic poltergeist stories originate in England, even though the word 'poltergeist' is actually German?"

"Here we go," Abbey muttered, her exasperation reflected in the side mirror.

"I saw you roll your eyes. Don't you dare complain. If you take me to the movie, you have to sit through the post-movie lecture."

"Go on," she said flatly.

"Poltergeists, some theorists believe, haunt the living to avenge their own violent deaths. They're murder victims, see? That's why the way in which they present themselves is always so terrifyingly violent - levitations, furniture being tossed around the room, objects spiraling out of control."

"Except none of it's true."

"Says you," he replied.

"Well, yes. I am a scientist, Jed. Even parapsychologists admit that many 'victims' of poltergeists confess to faking the paranormal activity they've reported."

"That's right. We've talked about this before, which makes it all the more puzzling to me why you bought tickets for that movie. And, by the way, the next time Lizzie asks if she can see it, we don't even hesitate when we tell her 'no.'"

"I'll let you handle that."

"And I will, with pleasure. The whole notion that anyone would want to witness an innocent person succumb to unspeakable violence at the hands of a metaphysical creature brought to life on the big screen is beyond me."

"You know, for someone who had absolutely no interest in seeing this movie, you sure know a lot about the subject matter."

"It's been out for a month. You think I didn't research the hype?" He gave her a pointed stare that turned quickly into a proud grin. "Besides, I know a little something about everything."

"I know you do," she admitted softly. "Your intelligence and impeccable knowledge of...well, everything...is the trait I fell in love with first."

"Now that's something I didn't know."

"I bet you thought I was a shallow gal, only interested in your good looks."

"Only on the days I was feeling especially egotistical," he teased.

"That handsome face was the icing on the cake. The combination of your big brain, good heart, and compassionate soul - that's what attracted me." She took a beat, then added, "And your forgiving nature, of course."

"You're manipulating me again. Don't think I don't know it."

"I'm hoping one of these times, it'll work."

He slid his right hand off the wheel and laced his fingers through hers, gently squeezing as their palms joined. "It just did."

His warm declaration gave her hope. The night before had been a sleepless one. After Jenny and Leo left, Jed retired to his study while Abbey waited up for him in their bedroom. He never made it there. It was intentional, she thought, to avoid the discussion awaiting them. He knew she hadn't planned to leave him vulnerable to an opponent, but she was fairly confident that knowledge didn't stop the myriad of bitter feelings that consumed him.

But now, things seemed calmer, more peaceful between them. Her optimism swelled beyond just small-talk and she longed for a conversation with substance, one that would allow them to clear the air once and for all.

As she changed into her nightgown that evening, Jed slipped into bed and turned off the lights just as quickly as he could. "Good night."

Abbey accepted it without a fight, for she feared forcing him into an exchange he wasn't ready to have would provoke a fight neither of them wanted.

"Good night," she said as she prepared herself for another restless slumber. She tossed and turned for about an hour.

He felt every movement, noted every sigh, and when he heard her fumbling in the dark for her slippers, he spoke up. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going downstairs."

After a 15-minute head start, he followed her down. She stood in front of the sink in the kitchen, a glass in her hand, completely oblivious to his presence as he secretly crept up behind her. "They're baaaack!"

Had she been at all aware, his scent probably would have given him away. But it didn't. So, with the first syllable of his gruff voice, she let out a yelp and dropped the glass on the countertop.

"You JACKASS!" she screamed when she spun around to face him.

"Serves you right for tricking me into seeing a movie I didn't want to see." He laughed.

"Stop laughing! That wasn't the least bit funny."

"Why can't you sleep? Did you have a nightmare?"

"No," she replied. "I just couldn't sleep. I came down here to get a snack. It turns out you didn't finish the chocolate cheesecake after all."

"Not yet. Give me time." He gestured for the plate she brought down from the cupboard. "I'm actually glad you're up. I can't sleep either."

Abbey rinsed her cup and grabbed one for Jed. "You seemed to be doing a pretty good job of it earlier."

"I'm a pro, skilled in the art of make-believe." While she retrieved a carton of milk, he took out the utensils and carried two slices of cake to the kitchen table.

"Good. You can share your talent at Ellie and Zoey's tea party next week." Her lighthearted expression melting into a serious one, she took the seat across from him. "I need to tell you something - about Leo and Jenny."

"What's that?"

"They're not going on a second honeymoon. Jenny is taking Leo to a Swiss clinic where her uncle is a doctor."

"What's wrong with Leo?" He froze, his hand still gripping the fork that hadn't even touched the cake.

"He has a drinking problem, Jed." Jed dismissed the response with a shake of his head. "Jenny tried to tell you this years ago."

"Leo insists he's fine." It broke his heart to admit that even he could see Leo was anything but fine.

"Do you really believe he's fine?" Jed stared down at his plate without an answer. "That's what I thought."

"Why should we trust this place?"

"It's not up to us. Jenny's his wife. She made the call. It sounds like a decent clinic, Jed. Jenny told me all about it. It's kind of like going to A.A. They treat clients on an outpatient basis on the condition of anonymity. No one will ever even know."

"Why didn't Leo tell me?"

"A combination of shame and denial. Also, because he's not happy about it. Jenny kind of forced him into it by telling him if he didn't do this, she'd leave."

"Because an ultimatum is sure to help their marriage." This wasn't regular sarcasm. He was unusually defensive. "If you ever did that to me...don't ever do it, Abbey. I don't know what I'd do."

"Are you mad that Leo's getting help? Or are you mad that you didn't know he needed it sooner?"

She hit a nerve. He glared at her as he stood. "I'm mad that he had to be forced into it, backed into a corner, probably convinced he has no other choice!"

"He HAS no other choice, Jed!" Her strong tone rivaling his, she rose to her feet as well.

"I don't want him to feel all alone, like everyone he cares about is just going to abandon him for something he can't control! I don't want him to feel ashamed. That won't inspire the willpower he needs right now."

"I'm sure he didn't like being backed into a corner, but it's for his own good."

"And I'm mad that I can't be there to help him through this." His voice was subtle, his impotence hidden in layers of frustration.

Abbey put a hand on his shoulder when he turned to rest his hands on the counter. "Jenny's there, Honey. She's his wife. She's going to help him."

"Leo told me she's always on his case."

"Jed." She tried to reason with him. "This is Jenny. She loves him."

He knew Jenny loved him, but his loyalty to Leo won out. "Sometimes, I think Leo doesn't believe that. I can't imagine what that kind of doubt must feel like."

"It's just a symptom of his alcoholism. Once he's better, he'll realize everything Jenny did, she did out of love. They'll get through this."

He turned again. This time, towards her. "Abbey, why didn't you tell me about this before they left? It would have been nice if I had a chance to talk to Leo about it, let him know I was here if he needed me."

"Jenny didn't want you confronting him. If Leo found out you knew, she was afraid he'd back out of the whole thing."

"Why?"

"He'd worry that you'd think he was weak or helpless."

"I would never think that. It's ridiculous for him to believe I would."

"You'd probably feel the same way if the situation was reversed," Abbey assured him. " And one thing you're forgetting - LEO didn't want you to know, Jed. He should have been the one to tell you."

"But since he didn't..."

"Since he didn't, I would have...if you had come to bed last night."

Jed avoided her stare. He plopped down in his chair and sipped his milk as he looked away. "Yeah."

Now that she had his attention, she took a deep breath and continued. "Do you think it's strange that we haven't discussed Jake Tillman? He is running against you and you seemed pretty convinced he was going to call me for an endorsement, yet you haven't brought it up since you first mentioned it."

"I don't know what to say."

"Then let me do the talking." She reclaimed her seat, looking him squarely in the eye as she spoke. "He hasn't called me and he's not going to. He'd be stupid not to know that my loyalty lies with you."

"You'd be surprised how many stupid people there are out there."

"Regardless, I'm not thrilled that you think I would consider endorsing anyone who ran against you. The fact that you suspected I would, even for a minute, tells me that we have a serious problem."

"I know you wouldn't do that to me."

"The thought wouldn't even enter my mind. There is no way I could ever support any other candidate and that's not just because you're my husband and I love you, though you are and I do. It's because I'm a constituent in this district and I truly believe you're the right man to represent all of us."

"Well, the fact that I'm your husband must have had something to do with it."

"A little bit," she agreed in a softer tone. "But I didn't need it to sway me. It's more about the fact that you're a terrific representative."

"You're a bit biased there, Dr. Bartlet." He winked at her.

"I'm not kidding," she answered. "I learned so much these past few weeks, Jed. I always knew you were wonderful, but I had no idea that everyone else knows it too. Everywhere I went, every door I knocked on, there was always someone who couldn't wait to tell me what YOU did for them, how YOU helped them. You mean a lot to the people in this town. They love you."

A rosy blush colored Jed's cheeks as he grinned modestly. "You're not just trying to build up my ego here, are you?"

"Please. Like you need my help with that." Abbey chuckled. "This sounds like I'm talking to one of the girls, but I really mean it. I'm proud of you. I'm proud to be your wife and I'm so proud of what you've done for all the people who count on you to serve them in the State House."

He lowered his head and when he looked back up, his face was beaming with gratitude. "I really needed to hear that."

"I wish I had said it sooner. You'll like this part too. I'm dropping my campaign."

"You're what?"

"I'm done. For the rest of this election, I'm going to focus on doing what I can do to help you."

"Abbey..."

"I'm serious. I told you from the start my goal was never to hurt you or to make you lose your seat. I never wanted that. I especially don't want it now."

He held up his hands to interject. "You can't stop."

"Why?"

"Well, for one, it's not going to look good for either one of us. You quit now and all everyone will say is that I asked you to or that you did it just so I wouldn't get my ass kicked."

"That's crazy."

"It's politics." And that's what it all came down to. Abbey hadn't yet learned how the game of politics was really played. "Also, if you stop doing what you're doing, I'm always going to feel like you're going to resent me a little bit."

"That's never going to happen."

"You say that now, but what about the next time you have a terminally ill patient who's in a tremendous amount of pain and you're feeling helpless because you gave up the fight for a drug that you believe could have helped?"

"This is my decision. Before I'd ever resent you, I'd probably blame myself."

"I don't want that either." He reached across to hold her hand. "You're not doing this to teach me a lesson. I know that now. You're doing it because it's something you believe in."

"Does it really matter why? Is it going to matter in the long run? I hate that I left you wide open. I know you saw this coming from the start, but I didn't. If I had, Jed, I wouldn't have..."

"I know. Your campaign is in full swing now and you have to see it through, not just for me or for us, but because there are people out there counting on you to fight for this."

"I'll tell you a secret," she whispered. "There aren't quite as many as I said. I mean, the panel discussion was a success and I do have some signatures, but you've been right all along. The majority is still not behind this."

It may not have been completely over, but the defeat was clear in her eyes. The light and dark emerald hues sparkled with disappointment and Jed sat back against his chair, speechless.

"What? No 'I told you so?'" Abbey joked.

He shook his head. "I thought you were doing so well. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I wanted to prove to you that this is as important to others as it is to me. But it's not." Disillusioned, she looked down as she swirled her fork around the frosting.

Jed wanted to help, to do or say something to take away the sadness he saw on her face. "I don't know if we can draw that conclusion just yet. Maybe you need to reevaluate a few things."

"You see a problem with my strategy?"

"Are you asking my opinion?"

"I'm curious about what you think."

The last time he tried to offer his help, she blew him off. This time, he proceeded cautiously. "There are certain things I've noticed that might be giving you some problems."

"Like what?" she asked nonchalantly as she leaned back and took a bite of her cake.

A tug of war played out in his mind and the love he had for Abbey won over his own ambition. He was about to do something he wouldn't have done for any other opponent. "Go get your map and I'll show you."

The thought was appealing, but she hesitated. "I can't do that. Asking you to help me while you're running on an entirely different platform would make us both extremely uncomfortable."

"Hey, don't think I'm doing it for you." A big smirk defining his features, Jed teased her. "I just don't want you to cry ignorance when you lose this thing."

"Watch it, Jethro."

"Seriously, would it surprise you to know that I've been rethinking my stand on the debate?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, it would."

"Given what I know, I would never vote for legalization of medicinal marijuana, but I am wondering if fighting you over a debate really is the best move - both politically and personally."

"Because of Jake Tillman?"

"I don't think what you do will help Jake at all. But if I'm going to pride myself on representing these people, then I should listen to what they have to say, even if I don't necessarily want to hear it. There is some interest in a debate and rallying against it may cause more problems than it's worth."

"But you're convinced a debate won't change your mind?"

"Or the minds of my colleagues. If you want my honest opinion, Abbey, I still don't think you'll win this war statewide. I just can't support it when it comes time to vote. But you can win this battle. Isn't that what you wanted all along?

She nodded. "Part of it anyway. What will that do to you?"

"Now that you've told me all this, I'm confident it'll do nothing to me. You need one-third to sign your petition, so if I get the two-third who don't agree with you to vote for me, we both win."

"Isn't that cutting it a bit too close?"

It was, he had to admit, but her happiness was worth the risk. "Closer than I'd like, but I have faith in this district. They're not going to vote for a one-issue candidate no matter what that issue is."

"You're right. They're not. Even the ones who support me say they're going to vote for you."

"You've been polling my votes?"

"You don't think I sing your praises before I get their signatures?"

The prospect made him happy. Even more than the promise of votes, Jed was touched that it was Abbey who was looking out for him with the voters. "I never really gave it much thought."

"We talk a lot about you. How else would I have known how much they love you?"

"I assumed those were the ones who turned you down."

"You know what they say about assumptions." She arched her brow slightly as she sipped her milk.

"Go get your goofy map," he ordered with a smile.

Abbey stood then and walked around behind him. She leaned forward, holding her hair while she pressed her lips to his cheek affectionately, kissing him. Their eyes locked together, she pushed his hair off his forehead, rubbed his shoulder, and left for the study.

When she returned, she found an abandoned kitchen table and crumbs of chocolate cheesecake that led out of the kitchen. She followed the path towards the living room, where Jed sat sprawled out on the sofa cushions, a plate in his hand and his dessert occupying his attention.

"You're as bad as Zoey," she called out to him.

"You know I can't resist this stuff." He set the cake on the coffee table as he took his reading glasses from her. "Thanks. Now, let's see."

Abbey collapsed onto the cushion and held her maps up for his inspection. "You know what I didn't count on?"

"What?"

"I cross referenced the numbers I got from the Secretary of State's office with the numbers I got at the library and some of them are outdated."

"Yeah. Look here." He pointed to one of the houses she had highlighted. "That's the Changs' house. You won't get anywhere with them because they've only been in the U.S. for four years. They haven't met the minimum years of residency to qualify for citizenship, so they can't vote."

"They've been in Manchester for four years. How do you know they've only been in the country that long?"

"I just do." Jed Bartlet knew his district. He knew the people, the families, and the issues that shaped the lives of his constituents.

She smiled. "I had no idea."

"Of what?"

'How involved you are,' she wanted to say. But she didn't. Embarrassed to admit that because of her hospital schedule, she had neglected this part of Jed's life, she paused before she answered. An economics professor at an Ivy League school - that's the career he had chosen. His service in the state legislature was only part-time, a noble title with the power to make change in tiny increments.

She always realized the depth of Jed's commitment and the strength of his dedication, but until she began her own campaign, Abbey had never met so many people directly affected by her husband's good will. She was proud of him for her own reasons. They adored him for theirs.

"Abbey? What didn't you know?"

"That you'd be so helpful," she finally replied. "I don't think you're ever happier than when you're helping people. I understand now why you're the politician in the family."

"You trying to manipulate me again?"

"Not this time. The long hours at the hospital made me miss quite a bit around here. I'm finally catching up and seeing this side of you is eye-opening."

"Now that isn't entirely accurate. It's not like you're new to this. You and I debate policy quite a bit. We argue over bills you think I should support, over ones you think I should introduce. You've been involved in every single one of my campaigns."

"Not to this extent. I know everything you did for this community. I was there, helping you sort out the pros and cons of different proposals and projects that would help these people, but talking to them individually gave me a whole new perspective."

"Why?"

"It was seeing the result of what you do when you're in Concord. Minus the politics and legal jargon, it was seeing, first-hand, the impact you've had on the lives of these residents. It's amazing."

"Why are you telling me this?" The timing piqued his curiosity even more.

"Because it's all true. You're going to win this election and I'm going to be there with you every step of the way."

"You've been out there for a couple of weeks now. Why tonight? Why is it suddenly so important for you to tell me how much you believe in me?"

"Because last night, you thought that I might support someone other than you in this election...and the fact that you thought it, even for a split second...it scared me."

The sincerity of her confession wasn't lost on Jed. He delicately tucked an index finger under her chin and lifted it. "I lost my head. I know how much you love me. I do."

"You said Leo doesn't always know it with Jenny. I don't want you to ever doubt it from me."

"I won't, Abbey."

"I'm sorry I left you vulnerable to Jake Tillman."

"I can take Jake, especially with you on my side."

"I'm always on your side. I may disagree with you now and then, but I'm always going to be in your corner, no matter what."

"I know."

"I always believed in you. I just always thought you knew it."

"I did. But it sure is nice to hear it from time to time."

She stole another kiss and stroked his cheek before she turned suddenly and leaned back against his chest. "You sure you want to do this? I won't be upset if you back out."

"I'm sure. I really am."

"Where were we?"

Jed pointed to the map as Abbey prepared to mark it accordingly. "Look at District Three in Sullivan County. On Elm and Pine Streets, you've got a group of cops who lobbied the legislature for stricter drug laws last year. Your canvasser is wasting time there. Try Cottage Street instead..."

TBC 


	9. Chapter 9

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 9

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: After Abbey assured Jed she would never support anyone but him in the election, she offered to end her campaign; Jed told Abbey he wanted her to continue campaigning and even offered a few tips

Summary: Abbey runs into a familiar face in Boston; Jed and his father are reunited once again

Author's Note: Due to illness, I've lost my partner for the time being. I'll do my best to get two chapters out each week, but if there's a delay, that's why

Abbey's feet hit the pavement and before she could lift herself out of the car, a wet puddle splashed around her brand new pumps and muddied rain water sprinkled her pantyhose. She opened her umbrella as she stood and picked up her pace with every step, eagerly jogging towards the shelter of long blue awning of the Emergency Room.

When she made it inside, she bent down to press her dry fingers to the damp circles that marked the moisture on her hose. "Damn it!"

"Here."

She didn't need to look up to recognize that voice. The tone. The pitch. It could only belong to one person and as she accepted the paper towel he offered, her eyes roamed his thin stature and stopped when they found his face. "John."

John Bartlet paused, then acknowledged her by calling her name. "Abbey."

"What are you doing here?" He was different from how she remembered. He used to have a piercing stare, a domineering posture, and a strong, willful presence. Now, he seemed weaker - both physically and emotionally.

"Waiting for the rain to stop before I attempt to leave."

"No. I mean, what are you doing...here? At the hospital?"

"It's a personal matter," he answered plainly. "Why are you in Boston? You work in New Hampshire."

"I'm here for a fellowship interview."

"More training?"

"It takes a lot of years to become a competent thoracic surgeon."

"Thoracic medicine...isn't that the chest?"

"The chest and the lungs primarily."

"The heart? Do you work with the heart?"

"A great deal. That's why it takes so much training."

"Apparently. How many years has it been?"

"So far, a total of six after medical school. I took a year off starting the summer of '79. My residency's almost over. Once my fellowship is complete, I'll be finished."

"I don't know how you do it with three kids who need you at home."

"Jed is a godsend. That's how."

He detected the prickly tone that laced her words, but he chose to ignore it. "Your fellowship...you're doing that in Boston?"

"Possibly." She softened her voice slightly. "I was on the waiting list here and a slot just opened up. It's between me and two others."

"Good luck."

"John?" She dried her hands of the wet umbrella and followed him towards the double doors before he could leave. "What are you really doing here? Are you feeling okay?"

"I feel great," he said without a moment of hesitation. "How is that son of mine?"

"Doing well. I'll tell him you asked."

"And the girls?"

"They're good too."

"I haven't seen them in a while."

She avoided his glance for a second. Then, she took a breath and told him candidly, "That's because of me. I asked Jed not to let you see them after what happened with Ellie's badge last year."

John always assumed it was Jed, not Abbey, who refused to let him visit. "What was it I did that bothered you so?"

"You hurt Ellie when you undermined Jed. You got her hopes up about something he couldn't give her just to make him out to be the bad guy in her eyes. You also hurt Lizzie when she overheard you exchanging insults with Jed on the front porch after he confronted you that night."

"What did Elizabeth hear?"

Abbey shook her head. "It's not important. The point is, I don't want her exposed to the kind of animosity that exists between you and Jed."

"Abbey, tell me," John insisted. "What is it that Elizabeth overheard? Please. I'd like to know because I never wanted her to be hurt."

As Abbey prepared to dodge the question, she saw the glimmer of sincerity that poured out of his eyes. "She heard you telling Jed that there's a reason Ellie doesn't like him."

He waved his hand in dismissal. "That was just something I said in the heat of the moment. Jed knows I didn't mean it."

"You really don't know Jed, do you?" She sighed. "None of this matters. The bottom line - I don't want the girls around you when you have such little respect for their father."

"Now wait a minute. You don't know anything about me. I respect Jed. We may not have the best relationship, but he's still my son. How dare you judge me!"

"I'm judging you based on your actions. They speak much louder than your words."

"I lose my temper sometimes. That's all. You can believe what you want, but my granddaughters - I don't want them to think of me the way you do. I don't want them to remember me like that." He sounded so angry and vulnerable as he collapsed onto a chair, out of breath and visibly shaken.

"Are you okay?" He didn't respond. Abbey sat down beside him and put a hand on his back. "John, I need you to breathe for me."

John nodded. "I'm fine. I'm just tired and I felt a little faint."

"You're in the ER. Now what happened?"

His cheeks suddenly paled in dramatic contrast with the rosy color in his eyes. Those soft baby blues swelled slightly. An indication of his concern, or perhaps his desperate desire to keep his problems private, Abbey figured. He sighed a stoic sigh and cleared his voice, but just as he opened his mouth to talk again, he was interrupted.

"Mr. Bartlet!" Holding a page of patient instructions, a nurse ran towards him. "Dr. Lange forgot to give you these. They're recommendations for cardiologists in the area. He wants you to see one ASAP and if you have any more pain or shortness of breath before then, you should come in immediately."

"He just had an episode right now," Abbey informed the nurse.

"No," John argued, standing. "No, I didn't. I'm feeling fine now."

The nurse looked to Abbey once more before she addressed John. "The doctor really doesn't want you to leave if you're still having problems. Why don't you come back to the waiting room and I'll try to get you in right away?"

"Look, I'm doing fine now."

"Mr. Bartlet..."

"All right, I'll come back. Give me a minute though, okay?"

John quickly folded the list in a hasty attempt to conceal the information from Abbey. Once the nurse left, he muttered, "They need laws to guard medical privacy. A person's health should be their own business."

"I don't disagree."

"Jed doesn't need to know about this."

Abbey stood to face him. "I'm not sure what you're hiding, but I'm pretty confident in saying I think he does."

"Why?"

"Because as you pointed out a few minutes ago, he is your son. And I am his wife. You're fooling yourself if you think I'm not going to tell him I saw you here."

"You never truly surprise me, Abigail." He began to walk away.

"If you want to see your granddaughters, you can come to dinner at the house tonight." The invitation stopped him in his tracks.

"You just told me I was no longer welcome in your home. Now you're inviting me to dinner?" He asked, turning to face her.

Abbey gestured to the paper John held in his hand. "We have some things to talk about."

"It's nothing, Abbey. It's just chest pain."

"How long have you had chest pain?"

"Long enough," he replied with a sarcastic smirk.

"Look, I don't have time for games. I'd like you to come over tonight. Maybe I can help. No strings."

"I don't want your pity."

"Good because I'm not giving you pity. You're Jed's father."

"Has that mattered before?"

"It matters now. I'm in thoracic surgery. You don't think I know some pretty good cardiologists who can get you in right away?"

"You want to put in your two cents? You want to help me?"

"It's your heart, John. What could possibly be more important? Yeah, I want to help."

Her offer seemed to float in the air for several minutes before John finally agreed. Part of her didn't think he would, but once he did, she realized it must have been a testament to his fear. If the look in his eyes was any indication, whatever it was that troubled his health had rattled his psyche as well.

It was well after noon when Abbey arrived home. The rain had finally stopped, leaving a thick blanket of humidity to envelop the summer air. As she drove up the long driveway to the farmhouse, she noticed Jed directly in front of her. Having just finished teaching his summer class, he had pulled in only seconds earlier. 

"How'd it go?" he asked as she got out of the car.

"I think it went well, but I can never tell. We'll find out next week."

"I'm sure you did great! I still don't know why you'd want to do your fellowship anywhere other than Dartmouth-Hitchcock though."

"You just like that we both work in Hanover."

"That is a plus, I must admit."

She led him to the front the door. "How was your class?"

"Only 12 people signed up for this section and today, only nine of them showed up. Of those nine, only five had any clue what my lecture was about. Some days, I don't know why I even bother."

"Because you're helping five students learn something they didn't know before entering your class. That's never a waste. Besides, the other four will pick it up eventually, just like they always do."

Hearing her parents' voices booming through the foyer, Lizzie bounded down the stairs. "I'm SO glad you're home! Can I go to Six Flags with Jeff's family tomorrow? His parents will be with us the whole time!"

"Whoa, give us a second here," Jed replied. "Aren't you volunteering at the hospital tomorrow?"

"Yeah, but I can miss a day, can't I?"

"Lizzie, it's going to be your second day," Abbey interjected.

"But I don't like being a candy striper as much as I thought I would."

Jed thought this might happen. He and Abbey had already addressed the issue once before, but Liz needed a reminder. "Remember what we talked about? If you don't like it, you don't have to do it the whole summer, but you made a commitment, so you do have to give it a chance."

"I did!"

"One day is not giving it a chance," Abbey replied. "You're only working a few hours, two days a week. Give it two or three weeks before you decide you don't like it. Anyway, you can't leave Karen hanging without ample notice."

"But it's SIX FLAGS!"

"No. I'm sorry."

When Liz turned her attention from Abbey to Jed, she realized there was no hope of getting what she wanted. "So the answer's really no?"

"Yeah. It's really a no." Abbey smiled at her daughter. "But if you fulfill your commitment at the hospital without complaint, when we go Acadia for the weekend next month, maybe Jeff can come along."

"Aren't we camping out this year?"

"Yes, we are."

Her face beaming, Lizzie looked to her father. "Cool! Can Jeff and I have our own tent?" Jed's inaudible grumble provoked Liz's sly grin. "Just kidding!"

"There's something wrong with you," he told her. "I haven't agreed to camp out with this boy just yet, so don't push your luck."

"I was kidding!" she repeated, then looked at her mother. "Thanks, Mom."

Abbey chuckled as she set down her purse. "Where are your sisters?"

"Zoey's upstairs going through your makeup. I know she's not allowed to, but she doesn't listen."

"Why didn't you put the gate up to keep her down here with you?"

"I did, but she knocked it down and then she started crying, so I had to follow her upstairs. Do I have to watch her again? She never does what I tell her to."

"Mrs. Weaver will be back tomorrow," Abbey assured her as she made her way up the stairs to pry her youngest daughter out of her makeup case.

"Where's Ellie?" Jed asked.

"On the roof."

"What? What's she doing on the roof?"

"I don't know, reading?"

He walked swiftly towards the door. "Lizzie, I was gone three hours. You said you could handle it."

"I did." She followed him outside.

"Your sister's on the roof."

Lizzie shrugged. "I told her not to go."

Shading his eyes with his hand, Jed noticed the jean-clad seven-year-old precariously stepping on the shingles. "Eleanor Emily Bartlet, get down here now!"

Ellie waved to him as she approached the attic window, the one that had been left open after she crawled out to the center of the rooftop. Jed waited until she disappeared inside before he went to meet her by the attic steps.

"Hi." She greeted him sweetly. "How are you?"

"Just fine," he answered. "What in the world were you doing?"

"Looking for rainbows."

"They're perfectly visible from the ground."

"But they're prettier if you look at them from the roof. You can see them better. I didn't fall or anything."

"But you could have. You could have seriously hurt yourself." His sharp tone got her attention. "You're not allowed to go back up there, okay?"

"What's going on?" Abbey entered the conversation with Zoey on her hip.

"I'm just telling Ellie that she's forbidden from playing on the roof ever again."

"What was she doing on the roof?"

"Looking for rainbows," Ellie said again.

"Never again," Jed ordered sternly. He turned to Abbey to see Zoey covered in red powder, pink lipstick, and a collection of silver and gold bracelets. "What's going on with Cinderella over here?"

"Miss Zoey had quite a bit of fun in our room. Not just with my makeup, but she got into our drawers, my jewelry, and your ties."

"I told her not to do it," Lizzie said in defense of herself. "Just like I told Ellie not to go up on the roof. They don't listen to me."

Jed ushered his two older daughters into the living room. Abbey trailed behind with Zoey. "Okay, listen, Ellie. When your mother and I are out, Lizzie is in charge. You and Zoey do what she says. Understand?"

"Yes," Ellie muttered softly. "But Zoey doesn't."

"I'll make sure Zoey understands," Abbey replied. "Now I'd appreciate it if you and Lizzie would straighten up the family room a little bit while I help Zoey wash off this makeup."

"Okay."

As the two girls left, Abbey shook her head. "Ellie doesn't usually defy anyone's authority."

"We just have to drill it in her head that she has to listen to Lizzie when we're not here. And as for Zoey..." He took his youngest daughter from his wife's hold. "I think we have a problem with her."

The toddler traced Jed's lips with her lipstick-colored index finger. "Daddy wikes it!"

Jed playfully stared back at her. "No, actually, Daddy, doesn't."

"She's only spoiled because of you, you know." Abbey grinned at him.

"Excuse me?" He crossed in front of her. "I spoil each of my girls equally and Liz and Ellie aren't nearly as audacious as this one. Besides, you spoil them as much as I do"  
"I do not."

"Why is Jeff going camping with us?"

"So I compromised with Liz to keep her at the hospital a little while longer. I'm still not as bad as you."

"So you say." He set Zoey down. "I love that deep down you're as big a softie as I am."

"Hold that thought until I tell you what I've done."

"What did you do?"

"I invited a guest over for dinner."

"Great. Who?"

"Your dad." She wondered if the news would upset him. After all, it had been nearly a year since he last talked to his father. Abbey studied his features for the first sign of his reaction.

Jed was speechless for a moment, waiting, she assumed, for her to crack a joke or give away the punchline. But when she didn't he asked, "You're serious?"

She nodded. "Jed, let's sit down on the sofa for a minute."

Once they sat side-by-side, he turned to face her. "What is it?"

"I saw him at the hospital today. He was looking pretty worn down. He was breathing hard. His face was pale. He was trembling. I think he's sick."

"Sick how?"

"While I was there, a nurse gave him a list of cardiologists. Apparently, he's been having chest pain."

"How sick is he?"

"I have no idea. Lots of people get chest pain for lots of different reasons. Because of his age, it's not uncommon to see a specialist afterwards, but I really don't know. He had another spell, so he went back to see the doctor after we finished talking. I couldn't press him for information because I had to get to my interview. That's why he's coming over."

Jed rose to his feet. He circled around himself when Abbey stood as well. "But it's his heart. You always say everything's serious when it comes to the heart."

"There is a chance that it isn't the heart itself. I don't think we can analyze this until we talk to John."

"So we'll talk to him. I want to get him a good doctor. A REALLY good doctor. Just to make sure he's healthy. I know you probably think he should take care of himself after what he's put this family through, but..."

Abbey silenced him. "He's your father. Of course we're going to do whatever it takes to help him."

"And we can put everything else aside for now?"

"Do you even have to ask?"

"He'll be okay with the right doctors, won't he?"

She took his hands in hers, hoping to calm him. "They're going to take care of him."

"Is there anything you can do for him? I'd feel much better if you could treat him." His declaration meant a lot to her.

Abbey smiled warmly, reassured in the belief that Jed trusted her medical judgment. "Honey, even if I was a cardiologist, I would send him to someone else. He's my father-in-law."

Jed nodded. "There must be a slew of good cardiologists in Boston, but what do you think of the heart hospital right here in Manchester? He'd be close by and maybe I could even go with him."

"Yeah. Or...you know, there is a pretty solid cardiology team at Dartmouth-Hitchcock. Robert Nolan is extremely good. You know I think very highly of him."

"You think he's the absolute best?"

"If it was my dad, I'd take him to Robert."

"Then that's who I'll suggest," Jed agreed. "If it was serious, he would have told me, right? I know we haven't been on very good terms, but he would have called me."

"I think we're getting ahead of ourselves here. Chances are this is a precautionary step. The fact that he doesn't already have a cardiologist tells me that whatever is wrong probably hasn't been going on for very long."

"Yeah, you're right. I just want him to know that he can tell me these things. I want to know these things. I don't want it to be the way it was with my mother."

"Come here." Abbey opened her arms to wrap him in a loving embrace.

Nine years later, the pain of losing his mother still burdened Jed. It had dulled considerably, but it never really vanished. He always carried it with him. And now that he was confronted with his father's possible illness, the grief that surrounded his mother's memory peeked through that hidden chamber in his soul to spark a wave of emotions he didn't think possible.

His distress surprised even himself, but it was his compassionate nature that forced him to strip the bitterness and resentment that had clouded his love for his father since he was a young boy. If John was sick, Jed was determined to help him, no matter what.

That evening, the conversation stumbled through several uncomfortable hoops. From the tension surrounding Ellie's story of how she finally earned the Girl Scout Space Exploration badge - with Jed and Abbey's guidance - to the cold response John received when he asked Elizabeth about her summer, it was obvious this wasn't just any family dinner.

"Lizzie, is something wrong?" Jed asked his oldest daughter when she practically ignored John.

"No."

"Your grandfather asked you a question."

"I answered his question. I said my summer is okay."

"You don't want to share anything else?"

"There's nothing else to share." Liz hadn't forgiven John for the argument she witnessed the year before. That fight between John and Jed had permanently changed her feelings and no one yet knew the extent of what she had heard.

Picking up on the teenager's hostility, John changed the subject. "So the CDC is recommending a new name for GRID?"

"Yes. They want to call it AIDS," Abbey confirmed. "It's about time really. GRID made it sound like it was simply a gay disease. We know better now."

"Speaking of healthcare, you're fighting to legalize medicinal marijuana. Is that right, Abbey?"

"That's right." She held her breath, waiting for the criticism she expected.

But John didn't give her any. Instead, he replied, "Would that also ease the symptoms of heart disease?"

There it was. He had finally opened the door to the discussion Abbey wanted to have. "There are many drugs that can help with heart disease, John. We can talk about them if you want."

"Maybe later."

"Okay." Abbey looked to her husband. "Why don't we have dessert in the living room? Jed, you and John go ahead while the girls and I clear the table."

The two men took Abbey's cue and just as they retired to the next room, Jed gingerly approached the subject. "You're worried about heart disease?"

"A lot of people suffer from heart disease, Jed. It's something we should all be concerned with."

"Abbey said she ran into you today at the hospital."

John nodded. "Yeah."

"What's going on?"

"Nothing. There's no reason for you to be concerned."

"Dad, if you're sick, I want to help you. Tell me what's wrong."

He tried to hide it earlier, but he couldn't deny the fact that it was a relief to know someone was there to offer support. "You know how doctors are. They never know exactly what's wrong until they run a battery of tests."

"What do they suspect?"

"It's my heart," John said. "Turns out, I have one."

TBC 


	10. Chapter 10

Rating: NC-17 for sex

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 10

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Abbey invited Jed's father to the house when she ran into him at the hospital; John admitted he's having problems with his heart; Jed agreed with Abbey that his constituents want a legislative debate on medicinal marijuana (Chapter 8)

Summary: Jed and Abbey have some fun after Jed does well in an improptu public debate with his political rival

Author's Note: Happy Birthday to Stockard Channing!

His entire body jerked for one solitary second of fright. The door slammed against its frame so loudly that Jed gasped as he turned. It was a hollow gasp, one left trailing in the air as soon as he looked at her. Her face was erupting with passion. Her lips were rosy and plump. Her eyes sparkled like genuine emeralds swimming in a sea of golden flecks so moist that they seemed to shine even her lashes. Her alabaster cheeks were glowing from a heat that was rising inside her.

The way she moved, that enchanting wiggle of her hips ignited a raging fire from the smoldering embers that had burned for hours.

He was already sweating.

Endless dark tresses fell into a soft nest around her shoulders and with every step she took towards him, he was mesmerized by the bouncy curls that shaped her features. By now, he was wearing only a dress shirt and his boxers, obviously ready for anything she had in mind.

Abbey walked to his side at first, their eyes locking as they spun around one another. A small strand of his brown hair had made its way to the middle of his forehead. The end just barely grazed his brow, so she slipped the tip of her finger underneath to sweep it from her view. Her thumbs gripped his boxers next and she pushed them down over his hips with no small amount of force.

Jed meshed his body against hers as his hands worked their way up her smooth, satiny legs and beneath the flowy summer dress that shadowed her shapely figure. He tugged at her panties and neither one of them cared that they ripped slightly when they fell around her ankles. Abbey stepped out of them without so much as a look as she frantically threw the dress over her head and discarded it, then pulled him to her. Her lips claimed his in a steamy assault of sensations, her touch so erotic that his entire frame shivered and any hint of control slowly evaporated from his tingling limbs.

He could wait no longer.

He lifted her left leg at the knee after he pushed her back against the wall. She instinctively wrapped that leg around his hip. Her fingers laced behind his neck, she maneuvered herself until she felt him at her entrance, positioning herself just so to help him probe the sensitive area before he slammed inside her.

She let out a small scream.

Jed stopped himself and searched her eyes for answers, but Abbey's response didn't come in the form of words. Instead, she lifted her other leg and wrapped it around his opposite hip, straddling him as she continued to guide him towards unspeakable ecstasy.

Jed's nails dug into her rear, only a scrap of her white satin slip protecting one tiny segment of her flesh from the crescent indentations. Once she stopped smothering his face with kisses, Abbey's ragged breaths warmed his ear, forcing him to summon his strength to hold her tighter. It wasn't slow or tender, this spellbinding invasion that consumed her body and soul.

It was hard and fast.

That's how she wanted it.

Today, that's how they both wanted it.

An innocent comment made during their daily routine had opened the floodgates and within seconds, they were both swept right off their feet, floating adrift in a rapturous game of sexual tension that had been building all week. 

"How complicated a procedure is it?" Jed had asked earlier that morning. His voice echoed through the crack in the bathroom door and rang through the bedroom.

"Not that bad. He'll be in the hospital overnight, but angioplasty isn't uncommon for someone his age, with his lifestyle and eating habits. Think of it as a warning." Abbey reached inside the top drawer of the armoire to pull out a white satin slip.

"And you're sure Robert Nolan knows what he's doing?"

"I would trust Robert with my life, Jed. Besides, your father's had two visits with him. What did he say?" It didn't really matter to Jed what John had to say. He wanted to be sure this was the right decision, regardless.

"He didn't say much of anything. He's been kind of quiet."

"That's not like him."

"No, it's not."

Abbey paused when she heard the blowdryer. When he turned it off, she asked, "What are you doing in there?"

"I'll be right out."

She watched with anticipation as he emerged. His skin was damp from glistening beads of water that dripped from his shoulders and disappeared into the skimpy towel that hugged the firm line of his waist and abs while covering his lower body. His hair was almost dry and when he combed it back, his brows arched in the mirror, widening his baby blues to twice their normal size.

Her reflection popped up next to his, but he never even noticed. This was what Abbey loved more than anything. All that sex appeal wrapped up in a man who could, at times, be completely oblivious to the sensual energy he created with a simple look or an unintentional gesture.

She smiled as she stood right behind him. "Do you have any clue how sexy you look right now?"

"I really don't," he answered with a sly grin. He then turned to face her. "Tell me."

"If you were any sexier, I'd have to say to hell with the event. I'd throw you on the bed and have my way with you."

Jed glanced at the bed, then back at Abbey, approaching her with small steps and a wanton look. "Guess I'll have to work up to my full potential then."

Abbey stole a kiss, but pushed him away after breaking it. "I should have kept my mouth shut."

"No, you really shouldn't have."

"I got us both excited for no reason. We don't have time."

His hands already wrapped around her waist, he pulled her in so fast, their bodies collided. "We can find time."

She relaxed her neck as he began enticing her with a trail of kisses. "You have no idea how much I want to, but we really don't have time."

"It's the first opportunity we've had in a week."

"Don't lose sight of what today's all about. The reason I'm not at work is because you have that Meet and Greet, which we will be late for if you don't stop."

He stopped then, reluctantly. "You really want me to?"

"No," she answered honestly. "But you have to. We need to leave pretty soon so we don't keep my parents waiting. I have to make sure Ellie and Liz don't need anything, wake Zoey up from her nap, get her dressed, and come back up here and help you pick out a tie."

"How do you know I'm going to need your help picking out a tie?"

"You always need my help picking out a tie."

"Perhaps that was true in the past, but today, I know exactly which tie I want to wear."

"Which one?"

"The red one. Or, you know, the one that you think is actually plum." He was surprised when she scrunched her face disapprovingly. "What? You like that one."

"Well, first of all, the tie you're thinking of isn't red and it isn't plum. It's maroon."

"How do you know I'm not thinking of the plum one?"

She ignored the question. "And I do like it. But not today. Not for this." She reached for his true red tie, then abandoned it in favor of the blue one. "I think you should go with the blue."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. It's a gorgeous color on you and it'll bring out your eyes."

Jed pondered this for a moment, then reached for his maroon tie. "Yeah, well, today, I'm in the mood for this tie. Call it maroon or plum or whatever, but it's got some red in it so that's what I'm going for."

"Okay. I was just trying to help."

"I appreciate it, but I like this one."

"Suit yourself."

She turned to leave the room, but before she did, she caught one last glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye and grinned triumphantly as she saw him replace the maroon tie with the blue one she suggested.

Jed grumbled when he made the switch. He did actually like the maroon one with the suit he was planning to wear, but Abbey was rarely wrong about these things. In fifteen years of marriage, she had learned every inch of Jed's body, every distinguishing mark of his features. She knew how he looked in every pair of pants, how his body conformed to every shirt. She knew which jeans brought out the voluptuous curve of his rear and which ones he felt the most comfortable wearing. She knew the hairstyle that made him look like a husband and father, lounging around the house, and the one that left no doubt that he was a handsome politician ready to take on the world.

Sometimes, she knew his body better than he did. He trusted her judgment. And so, for this event, he would wear the tie she picked.

By the time she returned, he was already dressed. "Girls all set?"

"Just about." She glanced over at him. Just as he picked up the tie, she smiled. "Nice tie."

Jed looked in the mirror and adjusted the ends around his neck. "Wipe the smirk off your face."

"Come here." With her hand on his shoulder, Abbey spun him around. She loved helping him tie his tie and Jed loved it when she did. "You know, I was reading one of my medical journals last night."

"Yeah."

As her hands worked the fabric into a loop, she slowed her progress. "I read the most fascinating article - kind of like a he said-she said thing - between two doctors. The one who took the opposing viewpoint was an oncologist in Los Angeles...Dr. Lloyd Parker."

"Go on."

"He argued that just because a drug shows promise in individual physician-directed case studies, it doesn't mean more research isn't needed before there's widespread approval of the drug. In some cases legalization."

"I agree with that."

"I'm sure most people do, but what I found particularly interesting was that he talked about specific drugs and, unlike most doctors, he was pretty frank about the medical ignorance surrounding them. In fact, he refused to support them without extensive studies on long-term risks and side effects."

"What drugs?" He realized she hadn't completed the task yet. She was stalling.

"Well, he focused on a few. He's suspicious about whether or not anti-malaria drugs can help Multiple Sclerosis patients the way they help patients with other autoimmune diseases. He mentioned that, along with infertility drugs, and drugs for cancer patients, like marijuana."

"He talked about marijuana?"

She looked up at him. "Yeah."

"And he's an oncologist?"

"Yeah."

"He sees cancer patients for a living."

"That's right."

"And he doesn't think marijuana should be used to treat them?"

"He didn't say that. He said he needs more information before making up his mind."

So far, Jed hadn't found a doctor who would publicly dismiss the medicinal marijuana debate. "Why are you telling me this?"

"I told you. I found it interesting," she repeated as she tightened the tie around his neck and started to step back.

Jed grabbed her waist to stop her. "Why else?"

"Nothing else." Abbey accepted his kiss, but when his hands dropped to her lower back, she squirmed. "You're just torturing yourself, Babe. We really don't have time to take this any further."

"We have fifteen minutes."

"I still need to help Zoey with her shoes and Lizzie with the clasp on her necklace."

"You can do that in less than five minutes, which leaves us at least ten." He snuggled closer. "And while I'd prefer a longer window, I'm adaptable."

"Jed," she sighed when he nibbled on her ear.

"It's your fault, you know. You're the one who mentioned throwing me on the bed and having your way with me."

"I meant it. If we had more time, I'd do it."

"We have ten minutes," he reminded her once again.

"The girls are downstairs waiting for us. Now is not the time to be naughty."

"You know how much I love it when you say 'naughty' in that provocative whisper of yours."

"You'll love it much more when I say it later." Her hands ran up and down his back.

"Get into bed," he urged her.

"Don't tempt me."

"Seriously."

"Seriously, I'm going to get out of this room before you get your way."

"Abbey..."

"Later, Jed." She threw him a saucy grin as she poked her head in the doorway on her way out.

"I knew we shouldn't have taken 'obey' out of the marriage vows."

And so they temporarily suppressed the desire burning inside them and left for the Meet and Greet.

It was an informal affair, sponsored by the local media and a popular diner in town in hopes of getting the community out to exchange ideas with the candidates. Jed, along with his colleagues, showed up eager to shake hands with a few dozen of his constituents in what was supposed to be a casual afternoon.

The tone of the brunch changed abruptly, however, when Jed was cornered into an impromptu debate by his rival, Jake Tillman.

"Medicinal marijuana poses no greater risk to patients than some of the conventional drugs doctors are using now. Just ask about the side effects of morphine, for example," Jake said. "In fact, my challenger is married to an MD. We already know she's in favor of it, so I'd be curious to find out if the two of them have actually sat down and discussed it."

Abbey's eyes narrowed in Jake's direction, but before she said a word, Jed stepped in. "We have, as a matter of fact. We've talked about it quite a bit and I've also done plenty of independent research on the subject."

"As have I," Jake replied.

"What else have you researched? I'd love to get your thoughts on how we can help the small business owners in the area. The farmers. Business and agriculture in general."

Jake was a one-issue candidate and just as Jed predicted, when he was asked to answer questions outside of that issue, he hesitated and stuttered. "Well...I think...I think...we definitely need to...make sure the farmers and business owners know we support them no matter what."

His answer was met with a scattering of applause as Jed's eyes met Abbey's. "I agree with you, but do you mean monetary support? And if so, how do we do that? Do you have a plan?"

"I've got quite a few ideas, actually. I think we need to restructure the community, support the things people care about. That's why I believe legislative debate is a good thing, especially when it comes to an issue as crucial as medicinal marijuana."

He never even addressed Jed's question, but no one but Jed and Abbey seemed to care. Jake's reversal was expected, though, and Jed was ready to respond. "Again, I agree with you."

"What?" Jake asked, caught off-guard by the admission.

"I agree with you about a debate. If it's important to the district, I'll support a debate on medicinal marijuana. What I am not prepared to do at this moment is to green-light my vote on legalizing marijuana, even for medical use. There's not enough evidence to convince me. That could change at some point, but until there's more information, you and I will just have to disagree on that."

Tom Phillips, the journalist who had questioned Jed once before, approached the two men. "Representative Bartlet, the majority of physicians agree that this medicine could help their patients. What more do you need?"

"In the early 1900s, physicians also agreed that heroin cough drops were perfectly safe for children. This is just a guess, but I'm pretty sure most physicians wouldn't dare prescribe heroin today." Jed's endless body of knowledge always served him well.

"Marijuana is not heroin," Tom clarified.

"What I'm saying is we don't have all the information we need to make an informative decision right now. We may in the future and I intend to keep an open mind, but, remember, to date, the FDA hasn't given federal approval for this drug and no state legislature has made it a legal to its terminally ill patients."

"New Hampshire could be the first," one of the attendees pointed out.

"Yes, it could, Susan." After acknowledging Susan by her first name, Jed returned her smile. "But I won't sign my name to it until I'm certain that it's safe for the people of this state and I can't be sure of that when we've got doctors questioning its validity as a legitimate form of medicinal therapy."

"Doctors support it, Jed." Jake echoed Tom's earlier statement.

"You shouldn't make generalizations, Jake," Jed replied.

"That's a pretty safe generalization to make."

"Really? Have you talked to Dr. Lloyd Parker about it?" When Jake looked away, Jed addressed the crowd. "Dr. Parker, an oncologist in Los Angeles, deals with cancer patients on a daily basis. In this month's issue of Today's Medicine, he's quoted as saying he's uncomfortable giving his support to a drug that has a non-existent documented success rate and ambiguous long-term side effects."

"What's your point?"

"Before doctors have a prayer of convincing the country, they're going to need to convince each other. In the meantime, I can't bring myself, in good conscious, to approve something that might further jeopardize the health of our most vulnerable residents. Those who are sick and are counting on doctors to heal them - and us to protect them - deserve a more judicious and perhaps cautious approach than you're willing to give, Mr. Tillman."

Abbey sat back in her chair. If this was a private moment, she would have jumped to her feet to challenge Jed on his opinion. But she didn't. Today, she was perfectly content knowing that he did what he had to do to win this spontaneous debate in front of his constituents. His intelligence and charming wit pulled him through and, at the end, a round of cheers marked his victory.

She waited for a break in the swarming crowd afterwards before she displayed her pride. "I can't begin to tell you how great you were up there!"

"You think so?"

"If you don't believe me, just ask the girls. While you were being congratulated, I overheard Ellie telling Mom that her father's DEFINITELY going to win this election."

"Ellie said that?" Jed peeked over Abbey's head to see his two oldest daughters waving at him and his youngest one smiling.

"Let's go over," Abbey suggested.

"We will, but wait a second." He grabbed her arm and led her to a more secluded location behind the door. "That little tidbit about Dr. Parker helped me and I suspect you knew it would if I got into trouble today. That's why you told me, isn't it?"

Abbey nodded. "I had no idea it would turn into this, but I figured you could use some back-up from the medical field just in case Jake got nasty."

"Thank you." He tilted his head and gave her a kiss.

"You know, there's a lot of other information in that article that might change your mind." She grinned.

"See, we're having a pleasant little moment and you want to trick me," he teased her.

"Trick you into seeing my point?" Her voice was as calm and lighthearted as his. "Just because I won't argue my stand with you in public doesn't mean I won't do it in private."

"How about we wait until we get home and then, we'll talk about it for as long as you want."

"Talking isn't what I had in mind," she informed him as she fingered his tie.

"That's even better," he whispered.

"You know, marijuana does have other benefits." She was talking softly now, her tone seductively low.

Just as she hoped, it made him weak in the knees. "Like what?"

"Virility."

So caught up in the moment, Jed nearly believed her, but then he narrowed his stare as he accused her of blatant manipulation. "Okay, you're just lying now."

Abbey's gaze met his and in that instant, she confessed. "Yes, I am, but hear me out."

"Nice try." He chuckled, ushering her back through the door and towards the rest of the family.

That afternoon, the Bartlets returned home a raw bundle of sexually driven energy. Abbey said goodbye to Lizzie, Ellie, and Zoey and after the three girls were driven away for quality time with their grandparents, she sprinted upstairs, pushing the bedroom door open so fast that it bounced off the wall and closed behind her.

She heard Jed's gasp when he turned towards her. His chest was heaving like he was already fighting for every breath. A stubborn strand of brown hair spilled over his forehead, contrasting beautifully with his pretty blue eyes.

His dress shirt and boxers. How she loved that combination.

She walked to his side and when she locked into his stare, she saw more than just his passion. There was an arrogant playfulness pouring out of those sapphire orbs - one she always adored, especially in the bedroom. She swept his hair with the tip of her finger as her thumbs gripped his boxers, pushing them down with pure, unadulterated force.

Jed pressed his body against hers and she sighed deeply when his hands began manipulating the hem of her dress. She heard the seam of her panties rip on the way to the floor, but she simply kicked them without a second thought as she tore the dress over her head and threw it across the room.

Out of her mind with desire, Abbey jumped into his arms, her lips claiming his with a kiss so steamy, she felt him swell against her belly. He lifted her leg at the knee and she willingly complied, pushing herself into the wall behind her for support. She wrapped that leg around his hip and with her fingers laced behind his neck, she bore into his skin and suffocated his face with kisses.

His nails dented the soft flesh of her rear as he maneuvered to find the right angle for entry. She threw her head back when she felt him and when he froze after he heard her scream, she raised her other leg to straddle him - a reassuring gesture to let him know she was okay. He couldn't wait any longer. Her warm breath was tickling his ear and he held her firmly as he moved. His hips were rotating faster and faster as every second ticked by, but then he stepped to his right and stumbled.

"What's wrong?" she asked when he almost dropped her.

"Nothing."

"Jed?"

"Nothing." He covered her mouth with his to silence her.

His adrenaline masked the pain, so he delicately pulled out and pushed her onto the mattress. She began to wiggle her way to the head of the bed, but Jed grabbed her hips and pulled her back down, his grip also clutching the slip as it started to rise beneath her. Once she was where he wanted her, he tossed the sheer material up over her head and removed it with one smooth stroke. He unhooked the front clasp to her bra, then settled between her legs. Abbey tugged at his shirt. The sound of tearing buttons was soon replaced by his grateful moan when his chest was exposed to her tantalizing touch.

He penetrated her quickly, but he paused immediately afterwards. Tenderly clearing her face of her dark, shiny locks, he took in the hungry look in her eyes, the one that urged him to speed his pace.

His body was grinding against hers, giving her the friction just where she needed it. Within minutes, Abbey buried her head so deep into the cushion of the pillow that her hips shot straight up to meet his every thrust. Her legs quivered. Her nails embedded themselves deep in his back and she secured her ankles around his rear.

Jed went even faster, withdrawing nearly all the way before he slammed into her over and over again. Her feminine walls spasmed around him and he called out her name just as she screamed his, both reaching a mind-numbing climax that left them gasping for air.

Physically drained, Jed remained inside her for a bit longer as she grasped the back of his head and held him in place. Eventually, he slipped out and rolled to his side. His arm provided a protective cocoon for her to slide into.

"I love you," he said as he kissed her head.

"I love you too."

"Let's try to do that more often."

She stopped laughing when she noticed him fidgeting. "What's the matter?"

"Don't worry about it."

"Jed."

"I think I just twisted myself around when we were standing. My back feels weird." He tucked his hand under himself to massage the muscle.

"How bad?"

"It's not really pain. I wasn't feeling it at all a few minutes ago."

"And now?"

"I feel it, but it's not that bad."

Abbey sat up and crawled across the tangled sheets towards his feet. "How's that?" she asked as she lifted one leg.

"That's okay." She lifted the other and he squealed. "Don't do that!"

"I'm sorry."

"What's wrong with it?"

"Could be just a muscle, but you should take something for the pain tonight and tomorrow, I think you may need to see your doctor."

"You're my doctor."

"Well, yeah," she tweaked his toe. "But I mean your real doctor, just in case you need an X-ray. Bulging or slipped discs are quite common when people twist their backs, especially when they're holding something as heavy as another human being."

Jed took her hand and pulled her to him. "I enjoyed every minute of it."

"I did too. Just to be safe, though, we probably shouldn't do that again."

"We've done it before. It's never been a problem."

"It is now. You're in pain."

"You're right." He winked at her, then rolled over to his stomach. "Heal me, Dr. Bartlet."

"You're incorrigible, you know that?"

"Yes, I do."

She didn't need much convincing. Abbey straddled the back of her husband's thighs and worked her hands down his spine while she leaned forward to supplement every touch with a healing kiss.

TBC 


	11. Chapter 11

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 11

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Jed did well at an impromptu debate with his political rival; Lizzie overheard a fight between John and Jed that changed her feelings towards her grandfather (Chapter 13 of On My Honor)

Summary: Liz finally opens up to Abbey; Abbey promises to look after John

AN: We've received several emails about the back pain so we just want to let everyone know that Jed's back pain isn't an early sign of MS. We won't be dealing with the MS until the 1990s.

There were many things Jed and Abbey tried to teach their children. Life lessons that would shape them into successful adults had to start early, they believed. And so, they emphasized the virtues of hard work, perseverance, kindness to others, and pure, uncensored honesty in every endeavor.

Elizabeth embraced most of those lessons, but the one that was sometimes lost in a cloud of good intentions, was the last.

"Lizzie?"

Her head hung low and as she looked up from under her dark lashes, her blue eyes met her father's with a steely expression he didn't even recognize.

"What?"

"I'm asking if you're okay." Jed was sitting on a wooden chair beside John's hospital bed.

Dressed in her candy striper uniform, Liz stood near the door. "I am."

"Then come on over and join us."

It took her mere seconds to respond by shaking her head. "I can't. The magazine cart isn't empty yet. I have more patients to see."

"You can take a break, Sweetie," Abbey assured her.

Explaining this wasn't going to be easy. Ever since she overheard the fight between John and Jed, Liz dreaded spending time with her grandfather. She avoided him when he was in recovery after his angioplasty that morning and now that he had been moved into his own room, she still couldn't bring herself to muster up the interest to talk to him.

Whenever she looked at that man, she heard the echo of the poisoned words he hurled at his son. Words, Liz believed, he could never take back, for they left an ache in her own heart. She couldn't imagine the way they had wounded Jed's.

Once again, she shook her head. "I would, but Mrs. Jones really hates it when she doesn't get her Cosmo on time."

John never bought the lie. He immediately sensed Liz's discomfort and instead of letting her walk out of the room undisturbed, he prodded her a little more. "Elizabeth, it seems I've barely seen you at all lately. Don't you want to catch up? Tell me what you've been up to?"

"I can't," Liz repeated.

"Sure you can. They give candy stripers breaks, don't they? You're volunteering your time. It's not like you're on the clock."

When it looked as though John was backing her into a corner, Abbey intervened. "Lizzie, you're probably right. Mrs. Jones can get cranky from time to time. Why don't you go take care of her and then get yourself something to eat."

She had an out. With a grateful smile, she accepted. "Okay."

"Hey!" Jed called out to her.

Liz hesitated, then turned to ask, "What?"

"Don't you need some money?"

"Oh." She approached him, relieved that he wasn't trying to stop her. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Don't worry about it," Abbey said, standing up to accompany Liz. "I'll come with you."

"I can go on my own."

"I start my shift in an hour anyway and I'd like to check in on Mrs. Jones myself." Liz nodded apprehensively as Abbey addressed the two men. "Would you guys like anything from the cafeteria?"

"No, but make sure Lizzie sits down and actually takes a break," Jed replied. "I'm starting to worry that pretty soon, she'll be spending as much time at the hospital as you do."

Abbey wrapped an arm around Liz. "She's a great doctor-in-training, don't you think?"

Liz rolled her eyes. "If there's one thing I've learned, it's that this isn't for me."

"You'll change your mind," Abbey whispered as she ushered her out the door.

"Mom, seriously..."

"I'm only kidding. You know that."

It wasn't a long walk to Mrs. Jones's room. A few steps from the nurse's station and a sharp right turn would have taken them there, but before they reached their destination, Abbey took a detour. She grabbed a hold of Liz's hand and led her into the staff lounge. 

"Am I allowed to be in here?" Liz asked.

"You're fine."

"Why are we here?"

"I wanted us to have some privacy so that you can explain to me what's been going on lately."

"Nothing."

"Stop," Abbey warned before Liz continued. "Lizzie, something is obviously bothering you and I'm pretty sure it has to do with your grandfather. Tell me what it is."

"It's nothing, Mom."

"Don't tell me it's nothing. You were rude to him the night he came over for dinner and you barely said two words to him in there today. Has he done something that's made you angry? If he has, you can tell me."

"He hasn't done anything."

"Then let me ask you something else. How much did you hear between your grandfather and your father that night?"

"What night?" Liz turned from Abbey's prying stare as she feigned total ignorance.

"You know what night." When she didn't respond, Abbey walked up behind her. "The night they were arguing on the front porch. What did you hear?"

"We've already been over this. I heard him say that Ellie doesn't like Dad."

"And then what?"

Liz twiddled her fingers around one another. "Nothing. Dad stood there. I couldn't really tell, but it kind of looked like he tried to say something a couple of times. He never did though. And then Grandfather eventually left and Dad sat down on the chair on the porch. It creaked...and he kept tapping his feet. I remember he wouldn't stop tapping his feet."

"Is that all you heard?"

"Isn't that enough?"

Abbey put a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Lizzie, the relationship between your dad and your grandfather is difficult to understand. They've never really gotten along."

Liz raised her head, but in an effort to halt the surge of anger brewing inside her, she bit down on her lower lip while Abbey continued. Slowly, her mother's voice began to fade and soon, it was completely drowned out by the voices from that fateful night.

Jed's tone was so clear in Liz's mind. It was harsh, yet soft. Perhaps that was because his sentences were broken, a direct result of the painful argument they were having.

He lashed out at John out of hurt. That was obvious to Liz. "You said I never liked you. I'm just curious, what was it I was supposed to like? The way you beat the crap out of me whenever I spilled something on the floor? The way you slapped me if I ever dared to disagree with you? The way you punched me if you felt I disrespected you?"

Jed's fury was nowhere close to John's cruel response. That was what Liz would never forget. The bitterness that seeped out of him when he yelled at his son would haunt her forever.

"You were a rambunctious little boy with a mind all your own," he had said. "You were selfish and demanding, just like you are now. The form of discipline I used..."

Jed cut him off by blurting out what Liz had been feeling as she listened through her open bedroom window. "Don't call it discipline. That's not what it was. You enjoyed humiliating me every chance you got."

John enjoyed humiliating him. Liz was stung by that word. The twisted accusation left a seed of hostility that had been nurtured over the past year. She couldn't forgive her grandfather for what she heard that night, nor could she ignore the obvious pain she saw in Jed's face when she walked downstairs after John had left.

To protect his pride, she lied to him, denying she ever heard any mention of abuse. She initially denied it to Jed. Since then, there were times when she even denied it to herself.

But now, she couldn't hold back any longer. As Abbey spoke of a natural conflict between father and son, she found herself losing the battle to suppress her emotions. She tried to listen to her mother, to understand the explanation offered, but it seemed like a futile attempt to shelter her from the truth.

"Your dad didn't have an ideal childhood, but he loves his father very, very much, even if they don't get along," Abbey insisted.

Finally, she had had enough. Liz spun around so fast that her sudden wave of energy shocked Abbey. "He used to HIT him! He BEAT him!"

Abbey suspected Liz knew more than she admitted, but when the fourteen-year-old confirmed those suspicions so strongly, she had to take a moment to catch her breath. Calmly, she said, "I know."

"Am I the only one who didn't know?"

"No one knows. Your dad doesn't want anyone to know. That's why we didn't tell you."

"It's not like I would have told anyone."

"I know, Sweetheart. That isn't why we kept it from you. It was never an issue of trust."

"Then what was it?"

"It's not something he likes to talk about. He feels weak and ashamed occasionally, even though he has no reason to." Her eyes followed Liz's clumsy walk to the sofa. "Can you tell me what you heard that night?"

"Just what I told you. Daddy said that he used to beat him if he spilled something on the floor. He'd even punch him sometimes." Liz twisted her head to look at her mother. "Why?"

"I don't know why. Your grandfather is a complicated man."

"No he's not. He's just a jerk!"

Abbey couldn't argue with that. Standing behind her, she ran her fingers through Lizzie's long chestnut tresses before she walked around to join her on the sofa. "Just between us. I always felt like he was a jerk too."

"There was a boy in my class in third grade. He stopped coming to school one day and one of my friends said it was because he wasn't living at home anymore because his dad always hit him."

"Why didn't you ever tell me that?"

Liz shrugged. "I thought she meant like a spanking or something. You and Dad never spanked us so back then, I thought it was wrong and that parents got in trouble if they did that."

"What happened?"

"I never thought about him again because we weren't really friends or anything. But then, in junior high, that boy...Gary is his name...he came back. He said he had been adopted by his aunt. I asked him why he couldn't see his father anymore."

"And?" Abbey tucked her daughter's hair behind her ear.

"That's when he told me what happened in third grade. He said that he forgot to clear the table one night and his dad got really angry and broke his arm."

"Oh, Lizzie."

Her lips trembling, she turned to face Abbey. "Do you think that ever happened to Daddy?"

"No. No, I don't, Angel. I don't think that happened to your father. John wasn't a great parent, but your dad has never told me of any serious injuries as a result of the way he was treated." It was technically true. But while Jed hadn't mentioned any significant physical injuries, Abbey knew the psychological torture he suffered was actually much worse.

"That doesn't mean it didn't happen. Maybe he just hasn't told you."

She was right. Jed had never been completely open about the abuse, not even with Abbey. Everything she had learned, she had essentially forced out of him. Still, she wanted to protect Liz from the same infuriating thoughts that had consumed her all these years, so she countered her daughter's argument. "I prefer to assume it didn't happen."

"I want to assume that too," Liz replied. "But I still don't understand. Why does Dad even want to be here? Why does he care if Grandfather's sick?"

"Because that's the way your dad is. John is still his father and there's a part of Jed that will always feel loyal to him, no matter what he's done."

"When did it stop? I mean, when did he finally leave Daddy alone?"

It was a question Abbey couldn't answer. She wanted to say it was when Jed left for college, but then she remembered an incident when she and Jed were dating. He had run into a door, he told her. Later, she found out the red mark that colored his face was the result of the back of John Bartlet's hand.

She remembered when she and Jed were engaged and making wedding plans. They had invited the two families for dinner, but sometime during the meal, Jed had been a little too outspoken, according to John. If it hadn't been for Jed's sharp reflexes, John would have decked him that evening.

Finally, she remembered the night that John had persuaded five-year-old Lizzie to lie to her babysitter so she could spend Christmas with him. After Jed burst through John's front door to pick up his daughter, John slammed him into a wall so hard that blue and purple bruises dominated Jed's backside for the next two weeks.

John hadn't raised a hand to Jed since then, but there wasn't a single part of Abbey that believed he wouldn't if he was pushed to his limit once again.

"I don't know when it stopped," she told Lizzie.

"Why do I have to be nice to him? Mom, why do I have to spend time with him?"

"You don't have to spend time with him if you don't want to. But you do have to be nice to him out of respect for your father. For whatever reason, your dad still loves him. That means we have to try to get along with him as well."

Liz nodded. "I'll never love him though. Daddy never did anything to him. Daddy never hurts anyone. He never hits. He doesn't even like to hurt anyone's feelings. He doesn't like to yell at me even though I don't always do what he wants me to. So many times, he's apologized to me for getting mad."

"That's because he doesn't want to ever treat you the way he was treated. He does lose his temper sometimes, but he always regrets it, especially when it comes to you girls. He loves you with all his heart."

"We love him too because he is the way he is. And I bet he was the same way when he was a kid too. That's how I know he didn't do anything. He didn't deserve it!"

"No, he didn't. No child deserves that kind of thing, Lizzie."

"Then why aren't you more upset about this?"

The question surprised Abbey. "What?"

"You act like all he did was borrow money and not pay it back or something!" Liz leapt from her seat. "He didn't! He hurt Daddy, I saw it myself! Why is he allowed to come over and why are you nice to him?"

"Hold on a minute."

"I don't understand any of this! You should be more upset! You should be MAD! Instead, you joke with him and laugh with him like it doesn't even matter!"

"Hang on!" Abbey stood as well, her frustration fueling her temper. "You have NO idea how I really feel about that man. There are times when I want to STRANGLE him for the hell he put your father through! I can't stand him. I think he's a selfish bastard who never should have been allowed to raise children!"

No one had ever challenged Abbey on her feelings towards John. No one ever dared to assume that she didn't despise the person who hurt the man she loved. She regretted her explosive reaction, but she couldn't stand the thought of Liz believing she had excused or even forgiven John.

Liz shuffled her feet and sheepishly said, "I didn't mean..."

"I know." Abbey took a few calming breaths. "I'm furious about what's going on. If I had it my way I would banish him from our lives forever. We'd all be better off, including your father."

"So why can't we just never see him again?" Her face crumpled when she asked that question. A mixture of curiosity, fear, and anguish spilled from her eyes.

Abbey reached out to her, taking her hand and guiding her back to the sofa. "Because he's sick and your father cares about him. As long as your dad loves him, I'm going to do whatever I can to help him. But be clear on this, Lizzie. It's not because I think what John did doesn't matter. It's because I love your father very, very much."

"When did you find out about it?"

"A couple of months before we got married. I walked in on a fight between them and afterwards, I had to drag it out of Jed."

"What did you do?"

"I let him know I was always going to be there if he wanted to talk. Ever. He rarely did though. After the wedding, we moved to London and we didn't have much contact with John. In fact, he never even got to meet you until your Grandma Bartlet died when you were five."

"I remember. That's why you didn't want me to see him."

"Yeah. That's why."

"I still don't get it. How come Dad never told me?"

"It's a private thing between his father and him." Abbey put an arm around Liz. The teenager leaned her head against her mother's shoulder. "You didn't tell Ellie, did you?"

"No."

"Good."

"It drives me crazy though because she always talks about how much she misses seeing him. When he came over for dinner a couple of weeks ago, Ellie was so excited. I just wanted to tell her what a jerk he is and that she should hate him as much as I do."

"You can't do that, Sweetie. It'll break her heart, just like it broke yours."

Lizzie relaxed slightly as Abbey began to stroke her hair. "It didn't break my heart."

"I think it did. You know why?"

"Why?"

Abbey paused before she answered. "Because when I think about it, it still breaks my heart."

Liz lifted her head to see a pool of tears shining her mother's eyes. She hugged her, then rested against her shoulder again. "Yeah."

"Also, you and your dad are as close as I am with my dad. I know what it feels like to learn something like this about your husband. I can only imagine how much it hurts to learn it about your father. It has to break your heart."

"Maybe a little," Liz admitted.

"That's natural," Abbey affirmed. "There's something else you said that I don't think you mean."

"What's that?"

"I don't think you really hate your grandfather. You just hate what he did and what kind of parent he is." That was being a bit optimistic.

Without hesitation, Lizzie replied, "No, I hate him. I hate him a lot."

Truth to be told, so did Abbey. But her optimism was out of love for her daughter. She wanted so badly to comfort Liz, to say something that would magically ease her outrage and erase that night from her memory.

From the moment Elizabeth was born, Abbey wanted nothing more than for her children to live in a perfect world - a world where Santa was real, where the Easter Bunny came every Spring and horrific scenes only played out on Halloween, where every little girl's life was guaranteed to be a fairytale, a place where a grandfather was a trusted paternal surrogate, and a family could function through the years without violent outbursts of anger from any of its members.

They didn't live in that world and as Liz raised her hand to wipe away a few tears before they trailed down her cheeks and stained her mother's blouse, they were both reminded just how far from perfect their world really was.

"I hate him sometimes too," Abbey confessed.

"Does Dad know you feel that way?"

"I'm sure he does. I've never said it though. I think if I did..."

She stopped then as a crowd of doctors and nurses rushed past the door. The echoing sound of machines and commotion drew mother and daughter out of the lounge and once they reached the hallway, Abbey's gaze wandered towards John's room. Jed was standing right outside.

"What happened?" Abbey called out to her husband.

"I don't know!" Jed shouted. "He was fine and he sat up for a minute and then he turned really pale and he felt sick and dizzy...I don't know!"

Abbey sprinted into the room and joined her colleagues gathering around John. Liz ran into her father's arms, clutching his jacket with her fingers so tightly that she nearly ripped the fabric. Frightened, Jed did nothing to loosen her grip.

Soon, the monitor stopped beeping and Robert Nolan smiled at his patient. "Not getting enough attention already?"

"Not the kind of attention I want anyway," John replied.

"Feel better?"

"I...I think so."

Jed peered over his wife's head to get a good look at John's face. "What's going on? What happened?"

"His blood pressure dropped a little," Robert answered. "No big deal."

"That happens sometimes," Abbey added.

"He'll be okay?" Jed breathed a sigh of relief when Abbey nodded.

The momentary scare had taken a lot out of him and his exhaustion was visible to anyone who noticed his dark circles and droopy eyelids.

"Can we talk out in the hall a second?" she asked him.

"Of course." He nervously followed her, expecting to hear bad news about John's condition. He held his breath as he prepared himself. "What is it?"

"Visiting hours are almost over. I think you should say goodbye for tonight."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Jed, it's late. You can come back first thing in the morning, but right now, you need to pick up Ellie and Zoey from the sitter and you have to get Lizzie home."

"Is there something you're not telling me? Something about my dad?"

"No." Abbey's hands slipped down his arms to his palms. "Honey, he's fine. I would never lie to you about this."

"Yeah. I know you wouldn't. I just assumed the worst."

"That's because you're tired. You've been here since early this morning. You need to get some rest."

"He might need me."

"I'm going to be here. I'll be here all night. I'll check on him every half hour. Okay?"

"Okay." He agreed reluctantly. "Before I go, what were you and Liz doing in the lounge?

"Just talking."

"Is everything okay?"

"I think so." Maybe someday, she'd convince Liz to tell him the truth about what she heard that night, but now wasn't the time.

"Okay."

"Hey, how's your back?"

"It's fine." He leaned to his side to prove the pain that had plagued him after their lovemaking the week before had vanished.

"I still think you need to get it checked."

"I know you do."

"If it's a bulging disc, which I'm fairly certain it is, it's just going to act up again."

"Abbey, please. Not now, okay?"

Something was wrong. Ordinarily, he would have just teased her for nagging. "What's really going through your mind?" He turned from her then. "Jed?"

"What time do you start your shift?"

"Pretty soon."

"And what time do you get off?"

"8 a.m." She walked around him. He tried to avoid her again, but she grabbed his wrist and held him steady. "What's up?"

Jed stalled at first, but when she raised her brow, he started talking. "I realize you care about all the patients in this hospital."

"Yeah." Confused, Abbey slipped a finger under his chin to lift his head.

"I know how you feel about him and you have every right to. I don't blame you if you don't care about what happens to him. It's just...he's my dad, you know?"

There was that unfractured loyalty she had described to Liz. It was always there, but it was never more apparent than it had been these last few weeks. She wrapped her arms around him and said, "I'll take care of him the same way I would take care of you. I promise."

"And you'll call me if something happens?"

"Of course."

Jed turned his head and kissed her cheek. "Thanks."

"You don't have to thank me, Jed."

"Not just for this. For everything you did for him. You helped him - and me - through this, Abbey, and that couldn't have been easy."

"I love you." Abbey pulled out of the hug. "Because of that, it was easy."

Though she downplayed her feelings towards John, she wasn't lying. It was because of Jed that she had invited John back into their lives. Her love for him was the driving force, the motivator that would help her through a night of truths and confessions. It was the reason she hadn't yet disowned John. It was why she was preparing for a special conversation with him - one she had been waiting an awfully long time to have.

TBC 


	12. Chapter 12

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 12

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Liz told Abbey she knew about John and Jed's turbulent relationship; Abbey told her daughter that while she hates John as much as she does, they'd have to temper their feelings out of respect for Jed; while John recovered from his angioplasty in the hospital, Jed asked Abbey to keep an eye on his father overnight

Summary: Abbey learns more about John's relationship with a young Jed

Abbey walked softly into the room, catching the door as it creaked towards the latch. She turned then to face a scene that gave her pause. John would be sleeping, she had assumed. But he wasn't. In fact, he was sitting upright in his hospital bed, leaning forward over a miniature chess board that sat on his meal tray.

Surprised, she folded her arms over her chest and watched in silence.

"You're allowed to talk," John told her. "As you can see, I'm awake."

"What are you doing?" she asked, approaching.

He looked up at her, a knight twirling between his thumb and index finger. "Playing chess."

"I can see that, but why? It's 6 a.m. Why aren't you sleeping?"

"Have you ever tried to sleep in one of these beds, Abigail?" Abbey's gaze fell to the floor. "That's what I thought."

She glided her hands behind him to adjust his pillow. "You need your rest."

"I need to finish this game," he replied. "Do you play? If you do, pull up a chair."

Abbey shook her head. "No. I have patients I have to see."

Her abrupt answer didn't shock him. It was expected, in fact. Every time he and Jed hit a roadblock in their relationship, it fueled his daughter-in-law's animosity. There was no way to endear himself to her and he accepted that. But even though he gave up trying to win Abbey's trust, the hostility she spewed so openly gnawed away at him.

"Why did you come then?" he questioned sharply. "To check on me?"

"Yes," she admitted. "I wanted to see if you were doing okay."

"I am. So you can go call Jed and inform him that you've done your wifely duty." His voice dripping with disdain, John looked back at his board.

Abbey bit her lip. A useless attempt to stifle her response. "Don't do that. Don't talk to me like that. Jed may give you a pass, but I won't."

"I'm well aware of what you will and will not do," he returned with a stare so cold that it sent a shiver up Abbey's spine.

"What the hell does that mean?"

"I'm not an idiot. You're here taking care of me this morning, but I don't believe for one minute that there wasn't a small part of you hoping I wouldn't make it through yesterday's procedure."

She sputtered. "You think I secretly prayed for your death? My God, you really are a piece of work."

"So this is what they call bedside manner. Do they teach that in med school or are you just expected to learn how to be arrogant and superior when you get out?"

"I'm sorry. I certainly didn't mean to come across arrogant and superior. I was going for plain old bitchy."

"Yet another success."

"Do you need anything?"

"No." He watched as she turned from him and headed towards the door. Her hand was on the knob when he mumbled, "I guess I should thank you."

Abbey stopped. She sighed so deeply that he saw her back rise. Then, she spun around to face him. "For what?"

"You're going to make me say it?"

"Gratitude has never been a virtue of yours, John. You'll have to forgive me if I don't know what you're grateful for in this case."

"For recognizing what was happening that day at the hospital in Boston, for recommending Dr. Nolan...and for helping Jed get over his anger." There was a smidgen of self-awareness there. He realized Jed didn't owe him forgiveness.

"Don't thank me for that. Jed is the one who decided to give you another chance. It wasn't because of anything I said or did."

"No?"

"You raised a forgiving son, one who's extremely loyal...even to people who don't deserve his loyalty." It slipped from her mouth before she could stop it.

"Never miss an opportunity to take a shot at me, right?" She didn't answer, so he continued uninterrupted. "Have you ever wondered why it is that Jed and I don't get along or did you simply assume it was all my doing and Jed was completely blameless?"

"Your relationship with Jed turned sour when he was a child, so yes, I do think he was blameless."

"Children aren't always angels, Abbey."

"I swear to God, if you try to turn this around and make Jed the fall-guy for your abusive actions, I WILL do something we will both regret."

"Abusive? You can't hurt me with that. You and Jed throw that word around so often, it's lost its impact. Nothing Jed went through was abuse, regardless of what he's told you."

"This isn't about what he told me!" she shouted. "It's about what I've seen with my own eyes, what I've heard with my own ears."

"It's not an accurate depiction of the relationship between me and my son."

"He was a CHILD! He was an innocent child who looked up to you and depended on you to keep him safe. YOU betrayed that trust! How you can ever expect anything more than contempt from either one of us is beyond me."

"It's amazing that you have such insight into that relationship, considering the fact that you weren't there."

Abbey calmed herself as she walked towards him. She tilted her head when she spoke. "There are times when my heart still aches for that little boy you taunted for so many years. He was too young - too little - to defend himself."

"I NEVER taunted Jed. We didn't get along, but you make it sound like I was intentionally cruel to him. I wasn't." There was quite a bit of sincerity in his statement. John wasn't just saying the words. He actually believed them.

"If you honestly think you were a good, decent father to Jed, you're delusional."

Ignoring her, he picked up his bishop and returned his attention back to his game. "Do you play chess?"

Abbey raised her right brow. "Chess? We're talking about Jed and you're asking me if I play chess?"

"There's nothing for us to talk about as far as Jed is concerned. You've already made up your mind about me. You're not likely to believe I'm not a vindictive bastard, so..."

"No, I'm not likely to believe that. I've seen evidence to the contrary in the way you treated Elizabeth."

"Elizabeth? I've always adored Elizabeth."

"Is that why you played with her mind when she was five? You told her the only reason Jed and I wanted another child was because she wasn't good enough."

"I did no such thing!" John protested the allegation with renewed anger. "If that's how she interpreted what I said..."

"What did you say?"

"For God's sake, Abbey, it was nine years ago!"

"Think hard." Abbey's steely expression was unbreakable. Her eyes bore into his until he finally responded.

"I really don't remember."

"Then I'll remind you because I'm not likely to forget. She said she wanted a sister and you told her a brother would be better because she wouldn't have to worry about me ripping her toys and clothes out of her closet so I could give them to him. As if I'd ever do that."

"Some parents do."

"You said if she had a sister, she'd find herself in competition, fighting for my love, that I may play favorites and she may not win. Sound about right?"

"I don't remember, but it's possible I said some of those things," he confirmed softly.

"That day, nine years ago - the day Lizzie cried when she asked if I wanted another baby to replace her - that was when I knew that Jed was absolutely right. Before that, I thought maybe you had changed, but when you hurt my daughter..."

"I never wanted to hurt her."

"But you did!" Abbey snapped. "I'll never forgive you for undermining her security. Frankly, I don't know what's sadder. The fact that you told her that or the fact that you believe Jed and I couldn't love Lizzie just as much if we had another little girl."

"I never said you wouldn't love her. I know you would. But it's been my experience that parents tend to choose sides. They tend to have favorites, especially when siblings are competitive, and siblings of the same gender most often are. I was with my brothers and so was Jed with his."

"That's because of the way you raised them! Jed felt he wasn't good enough. He felt like he could never measure up to Jack."

"Jed came out of the womb feeling insecure."

"No he didn't. Children aren't born feeling inferior. In fact, they're born thinking the world revolves around them. It's only when manipulative adults brainwash them that they begin to feel unworthy."

"I thought you had patients you had to see." He fumbled with his game piece again.

"I should have known you'd shut down as soon as we got to the heart of the matter." Once again, Abbey began to walk away, but this time, she stopped herself. This wasn't over. It was her chance to talk to John without any distractions or interruptions. The opportunity was too tempting to pass.

"What?" he asked when she pulled up a chair to sit down beside him.

"I'm on a break."

"Then wander the halls."

"I'm comfortable here, thank you."

"I'm not."

"Then hit the call button and have a nurse rescue you because I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to curl up and leave just because this discussion makes you uncomfortable." Her determination written all over her face, she glared at him.

It was an accusatory look, one that haunted him for several minutes as he gathered his thoughts and finally asked, "In that case, do you play chess?" 

"I'm married to Jed. What do you think?"

John cleared the board and handed her all the pieces except the bishop he was still holding. "I'm responsible for Jed's interest in chess, you know. I tried to teach him as far back as grade school."

"You did?" That was news to Abbey. She challenged him. "How old was he?"

"Young. Very young. He used to watch me play with his uncles. Ever since we were kids, chess was the one game my brothers and I could play without fighting." It was the only time John Bartlet felt as smart as his siblings. He didn't have the exceptional GPA or the outstanding SAT scores, but what he had was skill. The chess board was his IQ test.

"And Jed wanted to learn?"

John nodded. "I was thrilled when he asked me."

"Because he was reaching out to you?"

His posture suddenly relaxed and he softened quite a bit. "I guess so. See, the night before, Jed and I had a fight, a bad one. Had to do with cleaning his room or some such nonsense. He talked back to me, the way he usually did when I yelled at him. He was only eight years old, but even at that age, that smart mouth of his always got him into trouble."

Abbey wondered if he had raised his hand to Jed during that fight, but she couldn't bring herself to ask. "What does that have to do with chess?"

"The next evening, I came home from work, worried that we'd just go for round two. Jed liked to try my patience and even though I hated losing my temper with him, sometimes, I just couldn't help it."

"What happened?"

"I walked in and there he was - sitting at the table with his eyes glued to the chess board, struggling to understand. He looked up at me and in the sweetest tone I've ever heard, he said 'can you teach me, Daddy? I wanna play like you do.'" A fresh layer of tears shined John's eyes.

Abbey swallowed past the lump that formed in her throat. She could see it so clearly in her mind, the image of a young Jed searching for his father's guidance, eager to please him and, yet, genuinely curious about the rules of the game. It overwhelmed her for a moment. But then, she recalled what Jed had told her - that he hadn't learned to play chess until college.

Confused, she pulled herself together and asked, "So you taught him?"

"I remember it like it was yesterday. Here I was, expecting to scream at him before I even put down my coat and instead, I never felt closer to him. I grabbed him, sat him on my lap, and showed him how to move across the board."

His forlorn attempt at a smile was marked with sadness. The ends of lips curved slightly, but what Abbey would never forget was the way they trembled when he finished talking. "Then what?"

"He listened, at first. But pretty soon, he decided he knew better than I did and he made a mess of the board. He moved kings where they weren't supposed to go. He trampled the pawns and moved them out of the way." John's grip tightened around the head of his bishop.

Of course he did, Abbey thought. "He was a little boy, John. He was eight. He was just playing."

"I wanted to teach him. For once, I wanted him to sit back and listen, but Jed...he just wanted to jump right in and do it. I was annoyed. Frustrated. I threw the board up in the air. The game pieces went everywhere. I screamed something at him...I don't remember what...and then I left the room."

"You just left him there, all because he showed a little bit of excitement? How could you do that?"

"He wouldn't LISTEN! I was angry and if I had stayed..." He took a deep breath. "...it would have made things worse."

"So you left. And Jed?"

"When I came back an hour later, he had set up the board like new, but he wasn't there."

"Where was he?"

John set up the chess board, sliding it so the white side was closer to Abbey. "Doing homework in his room. I didn't see him for the rest of the evening. We avoided each other. He didn't talk to me about chess again until he came home after his first year in college." 

"He had learned to play by then." It wasn't a question.

"No, he hadn't," John corrected as he watched Abbey make her first move. "He set up the chess board and looked at me the same way he did as a little boy and he said 'I want to learn how to play, Dad.' I sat down across from him and we tried it again."

"Did it work out this time?"

"It did. He listened. He let me teach him in my own way. He picked it up rather quickly, in fact."

Abbey smiled. "I'm sure he did."

John took his turn and slid his rook towards her side of the board. "We played for hours that night. And then the next night and the night after that. It seems the only time Jed and I didn't fight was when we played chess."

Eerily reminiscent of John's relationship with his brothers. That's when it hit her. Abbey didn't dare destroy John's memory. She didn't dare tell him that Jed had already been playing chess. That his classmate, David Wheaton, had taught him at school. Though he had never shared this story with her, she knew Jed had lied to his father, probably to allow John the upper hand.

She pushed her pawn forward one more square. "Why do you think that is?"

"What?"

"The only time you don't fight with Jed is when you're playing chess. Why do you think that is?"

"I really don't know." John moved his piece.

"Who usually won when you guys would play?"

"Jed's good at many things, but I was the champion at chess." Though he'd never admit it to himself, that was the answer to the other question.

Without another word, Abbey understood. Jed was a member of the chess club at school. He knew the game like the back of his hand. She wondered if John really was better at chess or if Jed had finally learned the key to enjoying peaceful interaction with his father.

"I get the feeling you're proud of that story."

"I am. If you think I like the fact that Jed and I don't usually see eye-to-eye, you're sadly mistaken. I like that we can find common ground now and then."

"But you always ruin it."

"He does a pretty good job of that too, you know. Don't fool yourself into thinking this is all my fault."

"I'm not going there again. As far as I'm concerned, you were the adult when Jed was a child. If you had done things differently, maybe your relationship wouldn't be so dysfunctional now."

"That's a nice fantasy, but no matter what I did, I think Jed and I would still clash. It all comes down to the way we communicate."

"Then why have you tried to reconnect with him over the past few years?"

"Do you really have to ask me that? How would you feel if one of your girls cut you out of her life?"

"Jed didn't cut you out of his life. He just didn't know how to deal with you. It seemed like everything he did only angered you."

"Jed does infuriate me sometimes, but he's my son. He'll always be my son."

John stopped just short of proclaiming his love. Abbey noticed and curiously replied, "What was Jed's favorite color as a kid?"

"His favorite color?"

"I know everything there is to know about Lizzie, Ellie, and Zoey. I'm just curious if you ever knew Jed's favorite color."

"Green."

"It was blue. Still is."

John ignored the correction. "Your point?"

"The first day of seventh grade, he was assigned a top locker and he was too embarrassed to admit he couldn't reach the lock, so he carried his books around for months before he finally told his guidance counselor."

"He went to my school."

"That's right. You were the headmaster and you never knew that, did you? Didn't you ever see him carrying his books?"

"I assumed that was how he wanted it."

"Why in the world would he want to lug around ten textbooks all day long?" She pushed her pawn to his side of the board. "I now have two queens."

"Clever way to take my mind off the game."

"Jed is more important than this game."

"I never said he wasn't."

"He's scared of heights, fire, speed, and small places. Do you know why?"

"Jed never talks about his fears." John studied the board carefully as Abbey made her next move.

"When someone listens, he does. Did you know he can't stand the white cream in an Oreo? He sometimes twists the Oreo just to scrape it off. When he eats it whole, he has to have a glass of milk. You didn't know that, did you?"

"No, but I fail to see..."

"Did you know that he likes to eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for dinner occasionally?"

"Yes, I did know that. I used to make it for him when he was growing up. His mother always insisted he have a proper dinner, but if Jed was hungry afterwards, it was PB & J with bananas, just the way liked it. I must have made him that sandwich for him at least once a week."

"Did you know he can't sleep if his feet are completely covered by the blanket? It's strange, I know, but ever since he was a child, he had this thing where his toes have to peek out over the top or else he's up all night."

"I don't know what you're trying to prove, Abbey..."

"I'm just trying to make you understand that Jed never cut you out of his life. He couldn't have because you've never been a part of it, not even when he was a kid."

"Just because I didn't know the intricate details of his likes and dislikes doesn't mean I didn't care about him."

"To a child, it might very well seem that way."

"I doubt it ever even occurred to Jed."

"Children are extremely intuitive and they're pretty sensitive about things like that."

"We've never talked about it. He wouldn't have known I didn't pay attention to these things."

"Don't be so sure." When Abbey's queen threatened his king she exclaimed, "Check!"

"I'll get out of it," he replied confidentially.

"It doesn't matter since I can't stick around. My break's over."

"Then you forfeit."

"If it makes you feel better, yes I do." She stood and stuffed her hands in the pockets of her white coat. "By the way, Jed wouldn't have needed to ask you. He would have realized you know very little about him by your actions."

"How's that?"

"He can't have bananas in his peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The combination always makes him violently sick."

John's shoulders fell forward. He leaned against his bed and once Abbey left the room, he swept the chess board off his tray. Abbey whirled around when she heard the crash from outside the room, but as soon as she stole a glance through the crack in the door, she surrendered to her instincts and walked away.

Two hours passed by the time Jed showed up later that morning. Abbey had stayed true to her promise, checking in on her father-in-law every half hour even after their 6 a.m. encounter. She had just left his room when Jed found her.

Standing with her back to him, she scribbled data on John's chart. Jed snuck up behind her and slid a single red rose to her front. "Good morning."

Abbey stepped to the side to face him. "I'm so glad to see you."

"I'm always glad to see you," he replied.

She buried him in her arms after she greeted him with a kiss. "It's been a long night."

"Abbey, is he..." He pushed her away.

"He's fine," Abbey assured him. "It's just been busy in here. That's all."

"So nothing happened? Nothing's wrong?"

She wanted to tell him about their conversation, but she figured that could wait for a more private setting. Instead, she smiled at her husband and said, "Nothing at all."

"You look upset."

"Sometimes, I miss you...a lot. I'm better now."

Jed snuggled up to her again. "Then let me take you to breakfast. You're done, right?"

"Not yet." She broke the hug. "I want to wait for Robert Nolan to start his shift in an hour. I'd like to check in with him."

"Then we'll go to the cafeteria. Maybe they have some leftover chocolate cake from last night."

"That sweet tooth of yours..." she teased. "Give me a few minutes, okay?"

"Okay. Can I go in to see him?"

"Of course. He's up."

"Thanks."

Jed blew her a kiss before he disappeared behind the door to John's room.

TBC 


	13. Chapter 13

Series: Snapshots of the Past

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 13

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Abbey and John talked about John's relationship with a young Jed

Summary: Jed and Abbey resolve a few things

"Were the girls up when you left?"

Jed relaxed his hands under his chin. Isolated in his inquisitive stare, Abbey ignored him as she swirled her utensils around her plate. But that didn't bother Jed. He continued to pry speechlessly until she was forced to surrender.

After 15 years, he knew her better than anyone. He knew the angry lines that formed on her forehead when she was mad at him, the way her smile lit up her face when she was happy. And those eyes. Abbey's eyes always led him to a gateway of emotions.

Ordinarily, they held a radiant glow that seemed to define her most joyous moods. Occasionally, they'd look red or glossy, a testament to her exhaustion after a long shift. Today, they were neither. On this day, those emerald orbs lacked illumination. They weren't swollen or puffy. They were simply vacant. And for that reason, he was mesmerized by every blink.

"Are you going to tell me what's up?" he finally asked her.

"My question came first. Were the girls up when you left?"

"Ellie and Lizzie were. I made them some pancakes, put a stack in the oven for Zoey, and told them you'd be home soon. Now what's the matter?"

She tried to brush him off. "Long night."

"Apparently," he replied. "What did he do?"

She looked at him then, feeling foolish for thinking she could keep it to herself. "He didn't DO anything."

"Come on. What did he say?"

"Jed..."

"Abbey, I asked you to look in on him from time to time. Now, he obviously did something to upset you and I want to know what it was."

"We discussed you."

Suddenly, no further explanation was necessary. If there was one thing that could drive Abbey out of her mind, it was John Bartlet's denial. "You know you shouldn't do that. Every time you and my father talk about me, it only infuriates you."

"I'm surprised he didn't tell you all about it when you went in there."

"He didn't mention a thing. He probably figured I knew the difference between his truth and THE truth." Jed reached for her hand. Abbey released her fingers from her fork and allowed his touch, curling her palm into his. "Tell me what he said, Honey."

"Nothing new. Vintage John, making excuses and pretending to be a saint."

"Well, it's over now. He'll be released from the hospital this morning and that'll be that. Right?"

"What happens then? Are you going to try again with him?"

Jed didn't respond. There was no response good enough to explain the deep-rooted desire to build a relationship with John. He realized that no one would understand why he'd let a selfish man like his father anywhere near him, but it wasn't up to them to understand. The bond between parent and child hadn't yet been severed and as long as their was hope of healing, Jed couldn't bring himself to desert the wounded fragments.

Abbey nodded when he let go of her hand and stared down at his breakfast. "I love you."

His head still hanging low, Jed threw her a glance. "That's it? You're not going to warn me that he'll never change and that I'm just setting myself up for another blow-up?"

"No," she said plainly. "I just love you."

Her unconditional support strengthened his resolve. He set aside his plate and leaned over the table to steal a kiss. "I love you too."

"Just do me a favor and keep him healthy. Dealing with him in his normal state is bad enough, but the last thing I want is another night with the cranky patient."

"I'll do my best." Jed laughed.

"Thank you."

As he relaxed again against his chair, he pulled his briefcase up to his lap and pulled out a folded newspaper. "On to happier things," he said, handing it to her. "Take a look."

"What is it?" She gazed at him curiously before she flipped through the pages.

"Guess."

"I hate when you make me guess."

"That's why I do it." He smirked. Snatching the edge of the paper to point her in the right direction, he led her to the editorial section. "Check it out. Three op-eds and four letters to the editor. And they're all about..."

"Medicinal marijuana," Abbey finished, pleasantly surprised.

"You wanted to bring attention to it. You did. And not just here either. This morning's paper back home in Manchester is buzzing with an editorial and two letters to the editor as well." He watched her lovingly as she ran her fingers over the print, a look of wonder in her eyes when she looked up at him.

"It sure took them long enough," she joked. "But just based on my quick skim, most of them are against it."

"Yeah, but that was expected, wasn't it?" She shrugged and he realized it wasn't. "Oh, Abbey. You knew going into this it would be an uphill battle."

"I guess I just hoped I could make a difference."

"You did. You got people talking. You've ensured your petition, at least in our district, haven't you? That's making a difference."

"I meant..."

"I know what you meant. But change never happens overnight."

"I swear, if you quote Max Weber to me, I'm going to take away your dessert."

"I wasn't going to quote Max Weber, Smartass."

"No?" Abbey suspiciously quizzed him.

"No." He wrapped her fingers around his, squeezing gently. "I was going to ask you a question."

"What's that?"

"When the state legislature reconvenes next year, I plan to stay true to my promise. I will back Larry Griggs's proposal for a discussion on legalization for medical purposes, which means we'll need some doctors to testify."

"You want names?"

Jed shook his head. "I want you."

"To...testify? Jed, there are so many other qualified doctors."

"You know this issue better than any other doctor I've met. I am so impressed with how many minds you were able to change just in the past month. The best thing for your cause would be you telling me and my colleagues why we should vote in your favor - as long as you understand I'm not guaranteeing my vote one way or the other."

"One way or the other? That means you're considering changing your position?"

"I'll hear you out - you and the other doctors. I'll listen to the advocates and then I'll make up my mind."

"I thought you already made up your mind."

"That was before you got everyone talking about it."

"A little conversation was all you needed, apparently," she told him with the return of a spirited twinkle in her eye.

"Before you get cocky, I''ll tell you a secret," he continued softly. "I've learned a few things I didn't know, both about the proposal and about my constituents."

"That was supposed to make me more humble?"

"It not all because of you. The voters had a lot to do with it."

"The voters," she repeated, nodding.

"Okay, okay. You get the credit for lighting a fire under the whole thing."

"It's not about credit, Hon. I was just playing with you."

"And I know how you love to do that." He flirtatiously winked at her. "The point is, I'm a fair man, Abbey. If your side can convince me I was wrong, I'll admit it."

"So you're opening your mind to the possibility?"

"That's right. But I won't make anymore promises. I don't want you to be disappointed if, after all is said and done, I still disagree with you in the end."

"You know what?"

"What?"

"You are a fair man."

"You just figured that out?"

"No. I was just reminded of it."

He gazed at her adoringly and then said, "So, we have a deal? You'll testify and you won't expect anything I can't deliver, right?"

"Yeah. We have a deal," she assured him, a bit of apprehension lacing her tone.

"Then what's the problem?"

"Who said there's a problem?"

"You're hesitating."

Abbey rolled her lips and considered her options. Though she knew it might lead them down a path she didn't want to visit, she ultimately decided to be honest. "I just assumed you'd want another doctor."

"No." Once again, Jed shook his head. "I want you and so does everyone who agrees with you. You're the best person for this job."

When Larry Griggs introduced the topic of medicinal marijuana, Jed chose to go to someone else. Another doctor briefed him on the benefits of marijuana for the terminally ill. It wasn't because he didn't trust Abbey's medical expertise or because he thought she would led him astray. The only reason he didn't turn to her was because he knew the subject would awaken a passion so powerful that it would almost certainly lead to an argument between them.

It was the right decision, he had convinced himself. It wasn't until the night she found out he sought another doctor's advice that he regretted what he had done. The look in her eyes filled him with remorse, with guilt even. He hurt her that night and in true Jed Bartlet fashion, he had been looking for a way to make it up to her ever since.

Abbey feared the invitation to speak to the legislature was his answer. "If this is because of what happened a couple of weeks ago, you don't have to do this."

"It's not about that," Jed answered impulsively. "Well, maybe it is a little, but not in the way you think. I'm not trying to smooth things over or make you feel better. As much as I want to do that, that isn't why I asked you to be part of this. I really do think you're the one to do this based on everything I've learned in the past month."

"What have you learned?"

"Among other things, I've learned how much you know and how much you care about this topic. You're not just a fantastic scientist, Abbey. You're absolutely amazing. In every way, you're amazing. Your tenacity, your passion, your dedication to what you think is right...I mean, I always knew those things about you, but for the first time, I got to see it from the other side."

"The opposing side."

"It's no fun challenging you."

"You got through it unscathed."

"That's only because you pulled a few punches," he reminded her with a lighthearted grin. "Seriously, you did one hell of a job. Even if you were a total stranger, I'd pick you to represent your side at the state house."

"If I was a total stranger, you couldn't stop me."

"But since you're not?"

Her expression overflowing with gratitude, she replied, "What the hell. I'd still really like to address the legislature!"

"Good! Now that that's settled, may I propose that in the future, we're not going to do this. From now on, we're going to be on the same side of every issue."

"Yeah, right." Abbey sputtered.

"You think I'm joking. Truth is, I'm really not. It's hard work fighting you."

"It's not like it took a lot of effort, Jed. You did half the work I did and you won."

"You got enough signatures, didn't you?"

"Only in a few districts. Not statewide." She gave him a bashful smile of concession. "Just like you predicted."

"You got Manchester. That's nothing to sneeze at."

"Almost. I need eleven more signatures."

"That'll be a piece of cake."

"We'll find out tonight."

"Well, either way, I told you I'm going to back up Griggs. We'll have the debate, regardless of what happens. That was your goal all along."

"It would have a better chance of getting past the hearing stage if there was more constituent support behind it."

"You just started this, Abbey. In a few short weeks, you were able to do what I considered pretty much impossible. Give yourself some credit."

"A lot of that was thanks to your help. I don't deserve the credit. We both do."

Jed pressed his finger to his lips. "Shh. Don't tell my colleagues."

"It's our secret," Abbey agreed, laughing. "Maybe next time this comes up, it'll go over better."

"Uh oh, here we go."

"What?"

"You're already planning another campaign because you're convinced this one won't get the amount of attention you think it deserves. It's that type A personality of yours. You're never satisfied."

"I most certainly am satisfied when things go my way."

"If that was true, you'd stay at Dartmouth-Hitchcock for your fellowship instead of commuting to Boston every day." He swirled the syrup over his breakfast

She stared at him incredulously. "That just happened. How did you find out I was accepted to Boston?"

"I have my ways," he told her as he cut his French Toast.

"Still bitter about that, Darling?" she asked, sipping her orange juice.

"Not so much bitter as I am confused. You've had a good run in Hanover."

"I have, but residency is over and it's time for a new experience."

"See? Never satisfied."

"Neither are you, Dr. Bartlet, Mr.-I-took-my-SATs-twice-because-I-got-a-1580-Overachiever since the day he first talked."

"The day I first crawled," he corrected. "And it was a 1590. Get it right."

"Oh, sorry." She feigned regret.

"It's that little voice inside your head that whispers, 'Abbey, so what if you completed four years of college with a near-perfect GPA and then used your stellar MCAT scores to get admitted into one of the most prestigious medical schools in the world, where you graduated at the top of your class and had programs falling all over themselves to offer you a residency on Match Day. You still have to try harder for a fellowship that more accurately reflects your incredibly high standards.'"

"Hey! Don't insult my standards. It was those high standards that brought me luck in the love department." Taking hold of his hand, she raised it to kiss his knuckle.

"Then I take it all back."

"Yeah?"

"Anything that brought you to me can't be all bad."

"I didn't think so. Eat your breakfast."

"You just want my muffin."

"I won't lie."

Jed picked up the blueberry muffin on the side of his plate. "How much for half?"

"You're going to charge me?"

"Yep! The currency is love."

Abbey paused, trying to suppress the chuckle that threatened to disturb the moment. "That's about the corniest thing you've ever said."

"Pstt," he whispered. "Wrong answer." She watched as he set the muffin to the side furthest away from her.

"That's fine. I'll just resist the urge to tell you something you want to know."

"If you think that's going to work on me, you little manipulator, you're sadly mistaken."

"It's not a trick."

Her strong tone almost persuaded him, but he resisted. "Yeah, sure it's not."

"Am I tempting you?"

"Not at all."

"Okay." Abbey toyed with him, playfully twirling her fingers around one another while her eyes danced with his until he finally dropped his fork.

"What?"

Her lips parted into a half-smile as she straightened her back and told him, "You should check your sources. I'm not taking the fellowship in Boston."

"You're not?"

"I kind of like working just down the road from you. I like to know I can show up at your office and check in on you at any time of the day and night to fight off those lusty coeds."

"They don't stand a chance next to you, Sweet Knees." Delighted, he smiled back at her. "For real though, tell me why you're not taking it."

"Because when you put in as many hours as I do, there's a certain amount of comfort in knowing your husband is only a few blocks away. If I was commuting back and forth to Boston while you had to drive back and forth to Hanover every day, I have no idea when we'd see each other."

"So you turned it down."

"Besides, I couldn't ask for a better group of colleagues at Dartmouth-Hitchcock. The only reason I considered Boston was because of my old Harvard professors."

"Are you sure you made the right choice?"

"Yeah. I'm happy where I am. But I do have my eyes on Boston Mercy, so somehow, some way, I expect you to figure out how we can have a normal marriage while living in Manchester when my fellowship is over."

"Have you ever wanted normal?"

"I did...before I met you."

"And now you'll bid farewell to that fantasy?"

"Now I have a new fantasy." She scooted in towards the table, her chin resting on her palms and her elbows supporting her. "It involves you, me, and our daughters living out this incredible life we created."

"Happily ever after?"

"Just like the fairytales."

"I like this story." He gave her his undivided attention. "Tell me more."

Her voice faltered slightly as she slipped her feet from her shoes to massage his leg with her bare toes. Blue eyes locked into green ones and in that instant, the noise that filled the hospital cafeteria faded into oblivion, replaced by Abbey's sultry tone and a few quiet sighs that escaped Jed's serious demeanor.

They never even noticed John being wheeled to the entrance. Once he overheard a snippet of conversation, he looked to his nurse to take him back upstairs.

It was a platonic story, devoid of a graphic love scene. But it didn't matter. John could see the lust from a mile away. Even in the company of strangers, the looks exchanged between Jed and Abbey were those of lovers, of a husband and wife so engaged in one another that nothing - and no one - could disrupt the harmony between them.

TBC 


	14. Chapter 14

Series: Snapshots of the Past 

Story: Checkmate

Chapter 14

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Previously: Jed asked Abbey to address the State House about her cause

Summary: The Bartlets celebrate fifteen years together!

Author's Note: Thanks to all our readers for their support! All the storylines left dangling in this story (Jed's election, Leo's drinking, etc.) will be resolved in the next one.

Jed always knew when he was sleeping alone in his bed. Even in the deepest level of slumber, his hands would eventually roam to Abbey's side of the mattress and if they dipped into the cold rumpled sheets instead of her warm, voluptuous frame, he'd wake up, momentarily startled as he searched for his missing wife.

On this morning, it took only seconds to tame his curiosity. Relieved when he heard the sound of running water, he slipped out of bed, shed his body of his forest green Dartmouth t-shirt and boxers, and sauntered into the bathroom.

His senses were immediately assaulted, held hostage by the smell of her vanilla body wash mingling with a harsh, overwhelming scent of chemicals he didn't even recognize. When he surveyed the counter, he found the culprit - an empty bottle of hair dye. Abbey was going back to her natural hair color. Soon her dark tresses would be dancing among the auburn highlights he loved so much. Just the thought of it was enough to steal Jed's mischievous grin and replace it with a sweet smile as he quietly pulled the back of the curtain and stepped into the tub.

Pretending not to notice, Abbey continued to soak the suds under water. Pellets of rain splashing over them, Jed wrapped his arms around her from behind, intentionally caressing the lather that covered the smooth slope of her shapely breasts. Her hand fell from her head then and massaged his cheek as he nuzzled up to her ear.

"Happy Anniversary."

"I was hoping you'd wake up in time to join me." She pressed her back against him, moaning when she felt his dampened chest hair tickle her skin.

"I'm here. What do you have planned?" As if he didn't know.

Abbey turned in his arms, her eyes sparkling with lust while her fingers made featherlight tracks down his flesh towards his groin until she embraced the pulsating organ that swelled with her touch. Jed breathed a little harder and soon, his sultry gasps penetrated the walls of the bathroom, catching Lizzie, Ellie, and Zoey by surprise.

It was a tradition in the Bartlet house - one Lizzie began when she was old enough to cook. Each year on July 22nd, the girls would present their parents with breakfast in bed, homemade anniversary cards, and a single white rose, a symbol of security, happiness, and wedded bliss.

As they lined up inside the doorway after their knock went unanswered, three pairs of eyes scanned the empty bed before they heard the passionate voices behind the closed door to their right.

"Jed," Abbey laughed seductively.

"I love it when you wiggle."

Liz rolled her eyes. "Ew."

With furrowed brows, Ellie tugged on her sister's arm to bring her down to her level. "What are they doing?"

"Don't worry about it."

"I wanna know though."

"They're doing what grown-ups do when they make babies." Lizzie whispered then put her index finger to her lips. "Shhh."

"Are we gonna have another baby?"

"No, Ellie. Don't worry about it. Now, shhh."

Following in Ellie's footsteps, Zoey yanked on the seven-year-old's skirt until Ellie kneeled beside her. "What, Zoey?"

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why shhh?"

"Don't worry about it, Zo," Lizzie said, echoing the same thing she had told Ellie moments earlier.

"Why?" The toddler put her chubby little hands on her hips, something she had seen her mother do when she was frustrated.

Liz left the breakfast tray on the bed, then turned to her sisters and ushered them out. "Come on. Let's go."

"Why?"

"Let's go, Zoey. I'll tell you later."

Once Jed and Abbey finished their shower, they made their way out of the bathroom, their bodies now sheltered with bathrobes and towels. Jed closed the window, curbing the summer breeze that had invaded the room through a layer of gauzy curtains.

"Uh oh." Abbey noticed the single white rose resting on an anniversary card at the foot of the bed. She looked up to see the tray only a few inches away. "The girls were here."

"Oh God. They probably heard us, which explains why they left."

"We really should have that door locked."

"We do when we're in bed. I didn't even think about it when I got up."

"I wonder what Lizzie told Ellie and Zoey. You don't think she would have explained..."

"Bite your tongue," Jed replied. "I'd prefer it if Lizzie didn't know what sex was."

"She does, you know. I've told her about the birds and the bees."

"Yeah, I know. Doesn't mean I like it."

Abbey approached him, standing close as he sat down on the edge of the bed. His hands grabbed her at the back of her thighs and wandered up her terrycloth robe, over her rear, to come to a stop at the bulky belt that lined her hips. She leaned forward to press her lips to his. Her hair, still a damp nest of spiral ringlets, fell to the side, sprinkling his chin with little drops of water.

It was no secret that Jed Bartlet preferred his wife's wet locks. Her hair in its natural state, unencumbered by hairspray or teasing combs, served as a pristine backdrop to the creamy skin that glowed without a trace of makeup. But it wasn't just her beauty that captivated him, heart, body, and soul. There was just a special something that was embedded deep within her, and it shined through without the cloak of cosmetics.

He first realized it during a weekend trip to Martha's Vineyard when they were dating. An afternoon of swimming in the warm waves of the Atlantic had awaked his playful side and just as he picked her up out of the ocean to dunk her underwater, he saw an innocent look in her twinkling green eyes that threw him into a trance he still hadn't emerged from all these years later.

She hypnotized him that day. And he had never recovered.

"What?" Abbey asked, confused by the way he was staring at her.

"I'm just thinking about the first time I told you I love you."

"I remember it well," she said as she stroked his face with the back of her hand.

"I can't get over how much that wet hair turns me on."

"Wanna know a secret? I like your hair wet too." She ran her fingers along his forehead to touch the damp strand falling forward.

"Probably not for the same reason."

"You never know." A touch of attractive vulnerability went both ways.

They eventually stripped their post-shower wardrobe, changing into something more appropriate for breakfast with their daughters. Tray in hand, Jed followed Abbey down the stairs and into the kitchen, where they found the girls sitting at the table, eating.

"Lizzie, did you make breakfast for everyone?"

"Yeah. Happy Anniversary!"

"Happy Anniversary!" Ellie repeated.

"Happy All...e..." Zoey began, stumbling over her words until Abbey helped her.

"That's 'anniversary,' Sweetheart," she said as she picked up her youngest daughter. "And thank you, all three of you."

"You haven't eaten yet." Liz looked at the tray Jed had set on the counter.

"No, we haven't. We wanted to have breakfast with you guys."

"Cool!" Ellie smiled. "Can we talk about summer camp then?"

"Summer camp?" Jed questioned. "You went last year and you hated it."

"But I went for a month last year. This time, I wanna go to the day camp my friend Ellen is going to in August! She says it's super fun! We get to do gymnastics and drama and they even have a chemistry station where we can mix all kinds of stuff! I'll even make you nail polish, Mommy! Please, can I go? Please?"

Before Ellie took a breath, Liz jumped in. "Yeah, and while we're at it, you still haven't signed all my paperwork for basketball camp. It starts in two weeks. And can I borrow ten dollars?"

"For what?"

"I want to go to the music store to buy Survivor's Eye of the Tiger."

"Survivor? Really?" Jed couldn't understand the attraction to that band.

"It's huge, Dad. I really want it."

"What happened to your allowance?" Abbey asked.

"She spent it all on posters last week," Jed answered. "In fact, she's five bucks in the hole already."

"She borrowed an extra ten from me two weeks ago as well."

"I'll use it more wisely this time, I promise. And I'll pay you back as soon as school starts. Just this once. Please?"

Jed and Abbey exchanged an obvious glance to gauge the others reaction. Before they caved to two of their daughters, Abbey turned her attention to the squirmy two-year-old in her arms. "And what is it you want?"

"Ice cweam!" Zoey said gleefully. "Pwease?"

Their lives had changed quite a bit in the past fifteen years as they grew from newlyweds to parents, but the stability of their love had paved the way for a happy marriage, despite the occasional speedbumps.

That evening, Abbey sat at her Victorian-style-three-mirrored vanity in her bedroom. Her hands curled around the big round brush that she used to pull her hair while her blowdryer worked its magic. Out of the corner of her eye, she inconspicuously noted Jed's reflection in one of the side mirrors. He was standing beside the walk-in closet with two ties draped over his palms, struggling to choose the right one.

She had become used to this. He was a brilliant man, but, for some reason, he was incapable of independently picking a tie. She often wondered if it really was a sign of indecisiveness or if it was simply the result of his craving for the platonic intimacy that came from having her pick for him.

Either way, she didn't care. Sex and erotic passion was a big part of their marriage, but it was the little things she savored - hunching over his desk in the study, helping him grade papers late at night or him quizzing her before her medical boards, curling up on the sofa, their feet tangled around each other, each completely lost in their own reading material, yet perfectly receptive to the others touch or the slightest movement between them, and yes, picking out his tie. Those were the little things, the unrestricted morsels of time that she stored away in her memory bank forever.

Her thoughts got away from her and before she knew it, Jed let out a soft, frustrated groan.

"The red one," Abbey offered when she turned off the blowdryer.

It didn't come as a surprise to him. Little did she know, he intentionally stood where she could see him, hoping for her advice without having to ask for it. "You're sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Okay." Jed finished buttoning his shirt, then pulled his tie around the collar. "Are you almost ready?"

"Almost." She rose to check her outfit in the larger mirror above the dresser. Her black spaghetti-strapped dress revealed a hint of cleavage and hugged her curves all the way down to an inch above her knees. So tight that it showed off every detail of her feminine form, yet loose enough that she walked around in it confident and comfortable.

Jed crept up behind her while she ran her hands through a few of the dark auburn tendrils that stubbornly insisted on succumbing to the natural wave of her hair. Barely touching her, he coiled a diamond bracelet around her wrist and turned her to face him so he could clasp it in place.

Her eyes lit with enthusiasm, Abbey breathed his name. "Jed."

"This is just the first part of your gift. The next part will come over dinner when I get to gaze into your lovely eyes. And the final part, that you'll get at the party afterwards."

"It's beautiful." She twisted her wrist to admire the thin band around it. "I can't believe there's more."

"Believe it, Babe," he told her. "This whole night will be filled with little surprises designed to show you how much you mean to me."

"I don't need presents for that," she whispered as she tied his tie for him. "I planned to give you your gift at the party."

"Then I should take back the bracelet until I get it." He jokingly grabbed her hand.

"Not a chance." She pulled it from his clutches, straightened out his collar, then fell into his waiting embrace.

"Mom! Dad!" Lizzie's booming voice interrupted them. Jed and Abbey broke apart as she knocked and opened the door. "Dr. Nolan's on the phone."

"Oh no," Jed complained.

"Jed."

"No way, Abbey. We've had this night planned for a year. We're going to go out to a private dinner, just the two of us, then we're going to the Red Room where your parents are graciously hosting a huge party in our honor. There's no way you can go to work."

"We don't even know what he wants." She turned to face her daughter. "Lizzie, what does he want?"

Liz shrugged. "I don't know."

"He wants you to work," Jed concluded. "I'm an understanding man, Abbey, but come on."

"Let me talk to him."

"It's not for you, Mom," Liz interjected.

"What?"

"It's for Dad."

Jed reached for the upstairs extension, his mind racing with possibilities. It had been two weeks since he had performed John's angioplasty, so as soon as Jed heard Robert's voice, his thoughts wandered to his father's prognosis.

He hung up the phone a few minutes later, his jovial demeanor visibly absent.

"What did he want?" Abbey asked.

"My dad went in for something earlier and they had to admit him."

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know. They're going to do some tests."

"I'm sure he's fine. It's probably just a precaution. Why don't you go see him?"

He shook his head with no small amount of inhibition. "No. We have plans. Tonight is about us."

"Jed, you're not going to be able to have any fun until you know he's okay. It's almost six o'clock. Go see him. I'll cancel our dinner reservations. We'll grab something fast and head to the party at nine."

"Nothing was supposed to ruin this."

"It's not ruined. We're both going to enjoy it more after you see for yourself that your father's okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Go see him. It'll put your mind at ease."

"Thanks, Abbey. I'll be back soon. I promise." With a parting kiss, he left.

By the time Jed arrived at the hospital, John was settling in to his room. He adjusted his sheets and fluffed his pillow, sighing in confusion when Jed walked in.

"What are you doing here?" he asked his son.

"Dr. Nolan called. How are you?"

"I'm fine, Jed. You didn't have to come all the way down here, especially tonight. Shouldn't you and Abbey be celebrating?"

"You remembered?"

"Of course I remembered. I'll never forget the day you got married."

It was a bigger token of his father's love than Jed expected. He never would have guessed that John would have fond memories of his wedding day, let alone be able to recall the date fifteen years later. He sat in the chair to the side of the bed and opened the lines of communication with subtle, inconsequential banter that monopolized his attention for two solid hours.

The only time he thought to glance at his watch was when a nurse came in to take John for another X-ray and casually mentioned that Abbey was waiting for him in the lounge. He stood with a start, guilt-ridden and ashamed.

"She's probably so pissed at me," he said aloud.

"Go talk to her. She'll understand."

"I hope so," he muttered on his way out of the room.

"Jed?" John called after him.

Jed stopped and turned to his father. "Yeah?"

"Thanks for coming."

The sentiment was enough to convince Jed it was worth it, at least at first. But when he imagined Abbey's disappointment, a new wave of remorse sucked the wind right out of him. He paused outside the door to the lounge, inhaling sharply before he swung the door open to greet her.

"Abbey, I am so...uh...I..." Trailing off between words, he stammered as he examined the room. A small table sat in the middle, a chair on either end of the steamy meal that centered the beautiful service for two. "Wow."

"You missed dinner."

'All The Way,' Frank Sinatra's famous love ballad was playing in the background. "You got...?"

"Sinatra. I brought the portable player from home."

"Look, I know I screwed up tonight. I missed dinner and now we're going to miss the party too. I'm so sorry."

"Whoa, calm down. It's okay."

"No, it's not. I'm sure you didn't expect me to be gone so long when you suggested I come see him."

"Actually, I kinda did. I know you, Jed. And I know how much he hates hospitals, so I figured you might stay with him until he fell asleep." She put her had over his, squeezing gently. "What's wrong with him?"

"They 're pretty sure he has the start of...Restenosis? Did I say that right?"

"Yeah, you did. It's gradual narrowing of the artery where they put the stent."

"Yeah."

"They caught it early. There are things they can do. He might need surgery at some point, but there are things they can do."

"We got to talking and I guess I lost track of time."

"It's okay. I called my mom to let her know we'd be late. The party's going to be going on for hours. We'll make it there. Where's John now?"

"They took him for an X-ray."

"In that case, I seem to recall something about gazing into my eyes over dinner."

"You're not angry I messed everything up?"

"Nothing's messed up. You proved, once again, that you're as wonderful a son as you are a husband. Why would I be angry about that?"

Relieved, Jed opened his arms to her. "Happy Anniversary."

"Happy Anniversary, Jethro," Abbey replied.

He pulled back slightly. "You know how I feel about that."

"You missed dinner. I can call you whatever I want," she teasingly reminded him.

Caving to her logic, he chuckled. "It's been a fabulous fifteen years."

"The only thing that could outdo it..."

"Yeah?"

Her closed eyelids opened wide, revealing the love floating in her emerald orbs as she said, "Is fifteen more."

The End

To be continued in The Nobel Laureate


End file.
